Plans are underway to “boost the potential” of community life in Warminster.

Warminster Town Council have made a series of changes to help revitalise their town centre, as decided upon in a meeting this week.

They have requested a Community Asset Transfer (CAT) for Warminster’s Community Hub building, which is located in the Central Car Park.

The CAT process allows the transfer of a publicly owned asset, usually land or buildings, to a community organisation at substantially less than the market value.

The hub was built back in 1992 by the West Wiltshire District Council, before it was later inherited by Wiltshire Council.

They lease the building to the Warminster and Villages Development Trust (WVDT) to be used as an information centre and by the charity Cornerstones.

But in recent years, the building has been underutilised and the WVDT and the town council are now keen to see it play a more active and productive role for the benefit of the town.

The building is seen as “a key piece of the jigsaw in the town council’s ambition to regenerate this part of Warminster. “ The CAT request, if successful, would see the freehold transfer to the town council for, as is typically the case, £1 plus legal fees.

“Hopefully this is a positive step,” said Cllr Tony Nicklin. “We have been working with the town council for a number of years and trying a number of schemes for the building. Times have moved on and a number of properties in Warminster are moving out of council control, and the hub is a perfect extension of the town council’s outreach work.”

Cllr Nicklin said it was important for councillors to have a presence across the town, and he added that he was confident the CAT request would be successful.

He added: “Only about 25% of the building is being used at the moment - there is huge potential for the hub’s use to grow.

“It will need a reconstruction inside, not outside, as there are some small rooms and some corridors that could be addressed. Opening it up could give us a lot of options.”

In this week’s meeting, councillors decided to also ask Wiltshire Council to list the town’s police station as an Asset of Community Value (ACV).

The police station on Station Road, was put on the market by the Police and Crime Commissioner earlier this year, and town council members were advised that an offer had already been received to purchase the site, ‘subject to contract’.

Town councillors feel they were not given enough time to respond to the proposed sale.

If Warminster Town Council is successful in registering the police station under the ACV process, it would give the council up to six months to consider the financial implications of any purchase. The council would be able to ascertain the value of the site and then to explore how a purchase might be funded, including for example grants and working in partnership with other interested parties.

Finally, Warminster Town Council members voted to adopt a strap line which best describes the council’s recently agreed five year strategy. They chose ‘Warminster Town Council delivering a brighter, greener future for all’ to capture what the council is committed to deliver over the next five years.