A SCHEME to enhance Callington Town Hall and make it the hub of the community is about to take shape thanks to a funding boost towards the redevelopment.

A grant of £25,000 from SITA Cornwall Trust means that all the funding is in place to forge ahead with the project, subject to approval from building control.

Portreeve Rick Lumley said it was really exciting: 'It just dovetails with all the other things we are doing to try and enhance community provision.

'We have the one-stop shop and organisations like the CAB and Housing Association here and now we want to improve the layout of the hall and the bar and community area so it is more relaxed and welcoming.'

An external corridor is being created at the rear of the building so people can go from one end of the building to the other without going through the main hall, and an ageing boiler is being replaced with a more up-to-date heating system.

The kitchen will also be completely refurbished and it is envisaged that the open plan café area in the main hall will be replaced with a more flexible closed off community café that can be used by different groups.

SITA Cornwall Trust provides cash through the Landfill Communities Fund for community and environment groups to carry out a range of improvement projects.

The total cost of the Callington scheme is in the region of £130,000.

Town clerk Vernon Anderson said the council had set aside some money a while ago for the town hall redevelopment, but when a bid for National Lottery funding failed two years ago, the project had to be scaled down, including scrapping a plan for offices above the existing reception area.

He said the local PACT group (Police and Communities Together) and CATS (Community Action Through Sport) based at Callington Community College had been looking for a place to start up a community café for the young people and it was possible this could be at the town hall.

'This still has to be approved by the council but some councillors are already on board with this,' he said.

'The project is really about making the hall more versatile and more of a central hub than it is now. We also hope that it will be used more for functions like weddings.'

Michelle Roberts from CATS said a youth café was desperately needed in Callington because there was no real safe place to go for the young people of the town.

'CATS represents a range of different organisations and we would be looking to recruit volunteers in support of running the café,' she said.

'It would also be great if the children's centre could use it during the day for young mums to meet up.'

It is anticipated that construction work will take place in stages to reduce the impact on bookings but work is likely to begin in February 2010 with completion by Easter.