YOUNGSTERS will be asked to play a major part in making a Worcester skateboarding park a reality.

Their ideas will be sought by a group keen to ensure that the proposed location for the park is the best possible.

It is hoped that it will be constructed on a piece of land at Perdiswell Young People's Leisure Centre, although there will be no decision until youngsters have had their say.

The group includes Steve Jones from Millennium Volunteers, Sue Warriner from YVALL, (a youth volunteer service) Chris Waterfall, parks development officer with Worcester City Council and PC Nick Stinton, of Worcester.

"The project is about getting youths involved and consulting with them about what they want," said PC Stinton.

"We need to ask them what facilities they want because lessons have been learnt over the years when a piece of land has been earmarked for a project but has not been used because it has been the wrong facility,'' said PC Stinton

A Worcester Youth Strategy meeting was due to be held later this month when the skateboard park would be on the agenda.

"We want to get Worcester youth services on board with this because they can help us on the consultation side,'' said PC Stinton.

"They have youth workers out in the community every day mixing with youngsters, so they've got more of a feeling for what is required."

Councillor Derek Prodger, who is backing the project, said the city council had done all it could in moving the project forward and the decision rested with the skateboarding group.

"We want them to guide us. They must tell us what they want to do," he said.

The group would be responsible for identifying funding for the project, Coun Prodger added.

If the project goes ahead there is the promise of £10,000 from Worcester City Safety Partnership.

"The money is not in the bank but we have promise of it," said Coun Prodger.

"The project will take a little while. The skateboarding group is not going to be too quick with any decisions because they want to get it right."