WORCESTER people will get the chance to preview plans and ask questions about a new £1 million youth centre being built next year.

The new centre will form part of the existing community centre in Shap Drive, Warndon, replacing the previous youth centre in Chedworth Drive, which became too expensive to repair and maintain.

A meeting is being held at the centre, on Shap Drive, Warndon, for the community to find out more and have their say.

It is being held on Wednesday, December 16, between 5pm and 8pm.

The meeting follows the announcement earlier this year that £550,000 in government funding has been secured by a joint bid made by both the city and county councils to match the money to be invested from the sale of the old youth centre site for community housing.

Work on the centre is set to begin in April 2010, and is estimated to take six months to complete.

The new facility will be an extension on the community centre to provide additional activities for young people alongside the existing community programme and renovation work to improve facilities for all.

The refurbishment will also make the existing centre much more eco-friendly as part of the county council's commitment to working towards challenging global warming and encouraging long-term sustainability.

The new building will also include activity rooms and social areas, providing a designated youth-friendly space to replace the old youth centre.

The meeting next week is being co-ordinated by a planning group made up of representatives from Worcestershire County Council, Worcester City Council and the local community.

Liz Eyre, Worcestershire County Council’s cabinet member for children and young people, said: “Residents will have the chance to not only see the plans for themselves and ask questions informally, but meet the officers from both of the councils involved, as well as the architects responsible for putting the plans together.”