WOOLSTON will be the host of the first neighbourhood hub in Warrington now that council bosses have committed almost £2m to the project.

The Woolston hub will be the pilot for the town, and will cost £1.9m.

Plans for the hub include building a new children’s centre and relocating the library to the leisure centre in a development similar to the Orford Park Project but on a smaller scale.

Work on phase one is scheduled to begin in November. It will include the construction of the children’s centre, a new reception area, relocating Woolston Community Library, and building a fitness suite, sauna and steam room.

That stage should be finished by May 2010 and then phase two will start.

That will include work on changing areas, construction of a studio and the remainder of the reception area.

Phase two should be complete by August 2010, and the hub entirely open then.

Neil Anderson, Warrington Borough Council’s head of service for leisure, culture and heritage, said the hub would benefit Woolston by creating the district residents want.

“It’s about communities and what they want,” he said. “One size doesn’t fit all so all the hubs won’t be the same. This is an example of what could happen elsewhere but it might be very different.”

The hubs are part of the council’s 10-year regeneration plan, set out in 2007, which identified the need for actively promoting communities and neighbourhoods.

Woolston and Rixton clrs Bill Brinksman, Paul Bretherton and Tony McCarthy (Lab) welcomed the news.

"We have been lobbying for some time to secure this investment and also to ensure that Woolston was chosen as the first neighbourhood hub in Warrington.

"This will benefit the community at large from the very young to the elderly and will hopefully be something that both current and future generations of Woolston will be able to enjoy using."

Warrington Borough Council agreed to provide the money and explore opportunities for more funding from outside the council.

A bid to secure funding for a GP surgery from the Department of Children, Families and Schools was unsuccessful, but the council is still pursuing external funding opportunities.

Improvements to Woolston Park would be paid for if the extra money is secured.