WANTAGE’S Sweatbox youth club is set to benefit from Big Society cash but concerns over its future still remain.

The centre, which is based at King Alfred’s Specialist Sports College, looks set to receive £20,000 from Oxfordshire County Council’s £600,000 pot for community groups.

The Conservative-controlled county council announced it was to cut the centre’s funding last year and the secondary school and councillors are leading the bid to keep it open.

But headteacher Simon Spiers said he had “serious concerns” as it was unclear who would employ and fund the youth workers.

Mr Spiers said: “We are still optimistic that we will be working together to ensure the Sweatbox is safe in the autumn term. However, we also have great concerns at how slowly some aspects of the project are moving.

“We need some final decisions regarding staffing as it could become a mess.”

He said: “It is very difficult for the staff currently employed at the Sweatbox as they don’t know what is happening and that could be resolved by the council working as quickly as possible.”

The bid for Big Society money was boosted by the centre’s popularity and police reports that youth anti-social behaviour had risen when the centre was closed in the past.

Sweatbox Union member Tori Allnutt, 17, said the money would help but the centre had not been the same since the council announced the cuts.

She said: “We don’t get the numbers anymore because we cannot offer the same things we used to. It’s gone a bit downhill since the cuts were made.”

Wantage Town Council has pledged £10,000 and the centre is also fundraising to stay open. Liberal Democrat councillor for Wantage, Jenny Hannaby, who backed the bid, said: “It is splendid news that we have this start-up fund to carry on with the facility.

“With over 3,000 members we rather should have been recognised as an area that needed assistance. The centre gives the opportunity for our youngsters to have somewhere to go and meet and have some fun.”

But she warned that the club also needed volunteers to help run it.

Faringdon Youth Centre, which was refurbished last year, is set to receive £26,000, and Uffington villagers are to get £2,500 to provide a youth club after their base closed in 2008.

A total of £282,000 of the Big Society Fund is set to be approved by the cabinet in the first wave of funding next Tuesday. The council received bids worth £1.2m but said about £750,000 did not meet the criteria. There will be three further rounds this financial year.