A PLANNING application for Rose Hill’s new £3m community centre has been delayed as discussions continue over what services it will provide.

Oxford City Council had hoped to submit proposals for the new facility this month but this has now been pushed back to at least late June.

Details of the centre’s services have not been released, but Rose Hill city councillor Ed Turner told the Oxford Mail he hoped to organise some sort of health provision.

Thames Valley Police also confirmed last week that it was looking to open a new base at the centre and close its current office in The Oval.

Mr Turner said: “We want to ensure that all the organisations that we could accommodate in the centre will be accommodated.

“We want to allocate some health space and that is taking some time.

“It is going ahead. I think everyone would encourage us to make sure we get it right and, in particular, we work to get some sort of health facility in.”

The nearest provision for Rose Hill residents is Donnington Health Centre in Henley Avenue.

At a meeting of the Thames Valley Police and Crime Panel earlier this month, deputy chief constable Francis Habgood said: “We are looking at moving into the new community centre in Rose Hill.”

Thames Valley Police believes it will save £14,000.

Bill Buckingham, 91, secretary of the Rose Hill Community Centre Association, which runs the existing community centre in The Oval, said: “It is pushing it back all the time. It leaves us on tenterhooks of what we are going to do. When we do move we have a lot to sort out.

“The quicker we know where we are, the better it will be.”

Ray James, chairman of the Rose Hill Tenants’ and Residents’ Association, said: “We want a community centre that is fit for purpose and includes all the services that are possible to include.”

He warned if the delays continued residents may start questioning whether the project would actually happen.

Rose Hill residents will get the chance to view detailed plans for the centre before a planning application is submitted, but the dates are yet to be confirmed.

Louisa Dean, city council spokeswoman, said: “We expect that the application will be submitted late June or early July. We are planning some public events which will give local stakeholders the opportunity to view the plans prior to submission.”