Highfields Youth and Community Centre

Residents in the Highfields area can look forward to making even greater use of a £5 million youth and community centre, following a decision by city councillors to put an extra £180,000 into it.

The city council's Lib Dem run Cabinet last night agreed to strengthen links with the local community association by setting up a board of representatives to plan for the future management of the centre.

The board will include four members of the Highfields Community Association, the Learning and Skills Council and the city council. Sport England, the East Midlands Development Agency, and Government office East Midlands will also be involved.

The board will develop a range of services and activities to meet the needs of local people. It will also work towards the management of the centre being taken over by the community within two years.

Cllr Parmjit Gill, Cabinet member for adult and community services said: "I'm very pleased that we have been able to come up with a solution which suits everyone and means local people can get the most out of the centre.

"Our long-term aim is for the community to run the centre, as was originally envisaged. By setting up a partnership board which includes community members, we can work towards achieving this at the same time as getting services up and running."