New Barnsley town centre youth club to get extra £300k

The Youth Zone plan for Barnsley was originally approved by the council in February

The building of a new youth club in Barnsley has been given a boost with an extra £318,000 being given to the council towards its construction.

The authority has already committed £4.5m to the estimated £9.2m cost of the planned Youth Zone.

It will be built on the site of the former electricity depot between Schwabisch Gmund Way, Harborough Hill Road and Mottram Street.

It will offer activities for young people aged eight to 19.

Robin Franklin, Barnsley Council's cabinet spokesperson for regeneration and culture, said it was a "hugely aspirational and ambitious scheme".

Youth Zones offered "opportunities for social interaction, personal development and informal education to help raise aspirations and improve the life prospects of young people and are very accessible and open to all", he added.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the funding was agreed by a council cabinet meeting on 1 November, but had been exempt from public discussion as it related to the financial or business affairs of a particular person.

The Youth Zone, which will be run as independent charity and which will operate seven days a week, was granted approval in February.

Mr Franklin said it was an opportunity for the council to invest in "a state-of-the-art world-class youth facility and iconic hub".

It would "demonstrate a commitment to the health, well-being and development of all the existing and future generations of young people in the borough, while also complementing the wider regeneration of the town centre", he added.