Councillors have traded blows over the cost of the Sutton Life Centre and its value it to the borough, with the deputy leader of the opposition repeatedly branding the building a turkey.

Following lively exchanges at the Environment and Neighbourhoods Committee meeting, all members voted for an external review to help determine what to do with the site in future.

Much of the discussion focused on whether the building had lived up to targets set out in its business plan, and if it represents value for money when the council is being forced to make millions of pounds of savings.

Sutton Life Centre opened in October 2010 and was designed to be an educational and community facility. Schools are invited to make use of the centre for sporting initiatives and other hands-on learning activities.

In last week’s meeting, leader of the opposition Councillor Tim Crowley pointed out when plans were first drawn up for the centre, a target was set of 40,000 school pupil visits every year.

The centre is actually seeing 4,000 school children through its doors annually, and councillors agreed the majority come from schools outside the borough.

One of the main concerns from committee members is getting more Sutton secondary school students to make use of the building, with Coun Crowley arguing headteachers are simply uninterested.

When Sutton North councillor Steve Penneck said the centre is home to a successful library and educational facilities, Conservative councillor for Carshalton South and Clockhouse Coun Crowley accused him of trying to defend the indefensible.

Liberal Democrat Coun Penneck, who has been chairman of the centre’s management committee since September, said: "The council is having to subsidise the centre by £200,000 a year, and we are now in a financial position where we can’t afford that.

"The life centre was expected to cover its costs by 2011, but it hasn’t done that."

Figures suggest the council's yearly outlay on the Life Centre has exceeded £200,000 every year since it opened, with a total expenditure after income of £332,901 from 2010 to 2011.

Between 2013 and 2014 the centre's expenditure after income came in at £490,392.

Coun Crowley says the whole figure is local authority money, meaning the service is costing the council more than the stated £200,000 a year.

A council spokesperson said: "The budget for the life centre, like all libraries and many other services, is sourced from the council's revenue funds. The balance is made up from income from the services.

"Outside of the £200,000 subsidy, the rest of the centre's expenditure comes from the income it generates."

Conservative Councillor for Sutton South, Cheam and Belmont Tony Shields urged people not to see the Sutton Life Centre as anything other than a turkey, while Coun Crowley insisted it was outrageous for money to be thrown ‘down the plug hole’ when services across Sutton are facing cuts.

Members of the committee erupted into laughter when Head of Safer Sutton Partnership Warren Shadbolt replied the Life Centre is a turkey that has been stuffed with visitors.

Deputy leader of the opposition Coun Shields said: ""The Life Centre is the biggest mistake Sutton Lib Dems have made, the costs are through the roof.

"Financial blunders like this are the main reason the garden waste charges are coming in. It is not a lack of central funding as they would have residents believe, as there seems to be plenty of money still being spent on needless things."

The committee is yet to agree on who will conduct the external review, and terms of reference and objectives are also yet to be finalised.