Tadley youngsters will get to The Point

New £900,000 youth centre is set to open later this month

THE youth of Tadley will soon have a fabulous place to meet as the town’s £900,000 youth centre is likely to open in the next two weeks.

Tadley Town Council confirmed last week that The Point, in Newchurch Road, was due to be completed last Friday.

“They are aiming to open in the week commencing June 20, once furnishings and equipment are installed,” said Nicki Barry, clerk to Tadley Town Council. “An official opening will take place in September.”

Proposals for the centre have been eight years in the making, and The Point has seen months of setbacks and delays.

The building began to take shape in August last year ahead of an initial scheduled opening date in November on part of the former Burnham Copse Infant School site, in Newchurch Road, behind Tadley and District Community Centre, managed by the Tadley and District Community Association, which is also overseeing the new youth centre building.

The opening was put back until January this year owing to a shortage of skilled craftsmen, in particular carpenters, to finish the construction of the timber building.

The centre is based on a tree house design chosen by the town’s youngsters, who contributed to the initial feasibility study three years ago.

The new £900,000 community facility will be available to the area’s 11- to 19-year-olds from 4pm to 9pm on Mondays to Fridays, and will feature a café area and meeting hall equipped with pool tables and video games, free wi-fi and juke box.

The facility will also be available to the wider community during the daytime and weekends and features meeting rooms and a first-floor performance hall and recording studio.

Trustee Avril Burdett confirmed earlier this year that the total costs of the project were on track.

She said: “We won’t know the final costs until all the bills come in, but we are currently where we would expect to be.”

Funds for the building include: Public Works loan – £150,000; Turbury Allotment Charity – £300,000; Greenham Common Trust – £65,000; Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council – £182,300; and Tadley Town Council – £160,000.

Volunteers are needed for the café area. Any businesses keen to be involved as providers of sponsorship or donations for furnishings and equipment should contact TDCA on (0118) 981 4538.

For more details visit www.t-d-c-a.org.uk/

Picture: Tadley and District Community Association