Poundbury, Dorset; Plans for Dorchester's Great Field

From Wessex FM - Trevor Bevins, Local Democracy Reporter

"A new pavilion's being created for the Alcohol Education Trust. It will bring a café, toilets and office space for the charity, which works with young people to teach them about alcohol and its risks.
The building, similar to a traditional cricket pavilion, will be built off an existing pathway which crosses the Great Field, close to a play area. The café will serve hot and cold drinks, cakes, salads and sandwiches as well as simple hot food such as soup, toasties and jacket potatoes which will be prepared and cooked on the premises.Dorset Council has approved the planning application for the project which will be built at a reduced cost thanks to local builders, C G Fry & Son. It is being mostly paid for by the Alcohol Education Trust, but Dorchester Town Council has also helped by contributing £20,000. The charity says its mission is to “engage children of all abilities and backgrounds before they begin drinking, in order to help them build resilience skills, to know how to avoid and resist situations and to look after themselves and each other in a variety of settings.” Despite the town council’s support the application attracted 15 letters of objection, with concerns including the risk of evening anti-social behaviour, parking issues and the potential impact on nearby homes from general noise. Work is expected to start in the spring. Other works planned in and around the Great Field over the coming months include: a new network of paths due to start in September; a tree-planting scheme between November and March; new play equipment by late spring or early summer next year; the start on building an amphitheatre this autumn".