IT HAS asbestos in the ceiling, a broken heating system and draughty single-glazed windows.

But now the dilapidated Woodstock Community Centre in New Road will be regenerated thanks to a £145,000 cash boost.

It is hoped a revamped hall could be staging wedding receptions, conferences and community events in the new year.

Woodstock mayor Jill Dunsmore said: “We want to create a really nice hall that is suitable for the 21st century.”

Work will start in the next couple of months and she hoped the centre would be ready by Christmas.

She added: “The community centre is a valuable asset for the town and used by many groups, but bookings have been in decline for some time.

“We have patched, painted and washed but the state of the building has now gone beyond this.”

The centre is currently used by history group The Woodstock Society, Woodstock Stroke Club and toddler group Little Monkeys.

Work to improve the building will include revamping the bar and kitchen, installing a removable stage and raising the ceiling.

Woodstock Town Council has put in £50,000 for the work, West Oxfordshire District Council has given £35,500 and Waste Recycling Environmental (Wren) has given £50,000. Wren provides grants to communities living close to landfill sites. The remaining cash has been donated by Cottsway Housing Association and private donations.

Amanda Paton, who runs dance classes at the centre, said: “It does need a revamp. To have a nice hall, with better heating, would be beneficial, and the removable stage would be fantastic.”

Trevor Hendy, of The Woodstock Society, said: “A lot of communities in Oxfordshire, during the Millennium, developed new, state-of-the-art community centres.

“Woodstock did not because it already had a centre, but it is now in need of a major facelift.

“From the point of view of the Woodstock Society, the improvement to the main hall, the removal of the fixed stage and the improvement of the acoustics will significantly improve the site for us and will make it viable for many years ahead.”

Former mayor Julian Cooper, who is district councillor for Woodstock and Bladon, said he was delighted the money had been found.