YOUNGSTERS across Marlborough have breathed a collective sigh of relief after the town council agreed to take on the youth centre on a seven-year lease.

Originally the St Margaret's Mead building would not operate after May, as part of the Wiltshire Council's withdrawal of youth services.

However after it was offered to the town council on a 'peppercorn' rent, councillors unanimously agreed to take on the youth centre, in Salisbury Road, which will cost £22,280 a year to run.

A building survey found that external repairs to the youth centre, which at present is used by the Marlborough Community Youth Project, run by Coun Lisa Farrell, and Barnardo's every week, will cost £10,000 to repair the outside and a further £56,000 for internal repairs.

"I am delighted that the children will be able to use this facility but there is also mixed feelings that we have had to go down this route and not take it on in the way we wanted," said Coun Farrell.

"It would have been a disaster if it were to mothball after Wiltshire Council get rid of it so this is definitely the right decision. The kids have nothing else in Marlborough, we cannot let them down.

"I want to thank everyone who supported us and I really want to include the community in making this youth centre something the town can be proud of.

"The children were over the moon when it was announced the town council would take it on, there was a lot of relieved and happy people.

"It does however need a lot of work. It needs to be a lively, attractive place and at the moment it really looks quite depressing. Wiltshire Council have not done a good job in looking after it but we have a chance to decorate it and make it look lovely.

"We get around 50 children, aged 10-18, each week and close to 100 in the summer so this will benefit a lot of children. I do not know when the work will begin but hopefully it can happen soon after we take it on in May."

Once the lease has been finalised, Mayor Noel Barrett Morton said that they would lobby Wiltshire Council to agree to a community asset transfer, so that it could belong to the community, without having to pay the county council.

"The kids are delighted that we are taking on the youth centre. More than 25 of them turned up to our full council meeting to greet the news," he said.

"We will be pursuing a full asset transfer from Wiltshire Council as matters progress."