THE village of Lamerton could benefit from a brand new sports and community centre if a planning application by the hall committee is approved by West Devon Borough Council.

The proposed development would involve construction of a 441 square metre building on the recreation field, which already boasts football and cricket pitches.

The centre would feature a sports hall, changing facilities with showers, a kitchen, a meeting room and storage space for sports equipment.

Sports on offer would include badminton, volleyball, tennis, table tennis and basketball, as well as outdoor sports.

The centre would replace the existing village hall on the main Tavistock to Launceston Road, which has poor vehicular access and needs renovation.

Valerie Hill, chairman of the village hall committee, said: ?Our current hall is situated quite inconveniently with very poor access.

?Its upkeep costs are quite high and it needs a lot of work to maintain it. The idea of the new centre would be to bring together the community functions served by the parish hall with first class sports facilities.

?I believe it would be an asset to the community. The site we have chosen is not being used to its full potential currently.

?At the moment the

nearest sports and recreational facilities are in Tavistock and Mary Tavy. Some people even travel to Plymouth.?

The development would involve minor external alterations, including the creation of a car park for visitors and staff. However, the existing play area would be left largely unaltered.

The application was submitted last week and could go before a planning committee as early as December. First there will be a consultation stage taking into account feedback from neighbours and various bodies, including Lamerton Parish Council which own the land.

Mrs Hill said it was not yet clear where all the funding for the project would come from although the committee had raised money through various fundraising events.

?The idea for the new centre has been in the pipeline for about five years now,? she said.

?During that time we have raised a certain amount of money towards it through coffee mornings, Christmas fayres, jumble sales and our annual harvest auction.?

West Devon Borough Cllr Robin Pike said: ?The hall they?ve got at the moment has been there since the 1930s, so the facilities are very old and out of date.

?The modern facilities in this new centre would be much more in line with their needs today, and it is also in a more accessible location.?