Users of Morpeth’s two community centres have been warned that action could be taken if an agreement for the storage of items is not followed.
The guidance for the Storey Park and St James’ buildings was issued by the town council’s property and asset management committee after a review of the hire conditions.
Committee chairman Andrew Tebbutt said: “We do our best as a council to provide storage for our regular users, but there are issues which need to be addressed.
“They should not be able to leave things in either of the centres without the clerk’s approval and our staff should be able to access any part of the building and all the furniture.
“It is unacceptable if they can’t open a cupboard because it has been locked by someone from one of the groups using the centres.
“We need to be clear that from now on, we will enforce the hiring agreement.”
He added that the town council remains in negotiations with Northumberland County Council about taking over the freehold and full management of Storey Park.