THE scheme to create a community hub in Abergavenny with its mission 'from the cradle to the grave', is about to become a reality.

The old Park Street Infants' School building was pulled from sale at an auction in June 2011 to allow Monmouthshire County Council to enter into negotiations with the Abergavenny Community Trust so that the organisation could take over the site.

And now the trust is just days away from being given the keys to the complex to enable work to start on the building to turn it into a new community centre.

Marion Pearse, one of the unpaid directors of the project, said, "We are currently in negotiation with the Monmouthshire Council with a view to getting into the building as soon as it is safe and legal to do so.

"This is not something that we control but we have been told the likely date that we can move in is sometime in January .

"However, we are still waiting the outcome of the important safety checks - water, electricity and gas to be re-connected and we need new toilets to be installed, business rates established and all the insurances in place before the public can use the centre."

Abergavenny Town Council has granted the project £3,000 to enable the removal of the old child-sized toilets and for the space to be reconfigured with sanitary wear for use by adults and the installation of a disabled toilet.

The children's toilets, cubicles, urinals and dryers will be reused in the nursery unit or sold on.

Currently the building is like a snap shot in time with paintings and drawings still displayed on the walls left over from the last day it was used by Cantref Primary School in 2006 when it was their temporary home while the Harold Road site was being redeveloped.

On a tour of the building Marion explained that the large old cloakroom area is going to be remodelled into a café area.

The main hall, currently with large historical Park Street School paintings on the walls, still has the facility to be divided into two units, which the centre's directors hope to utilise to maximise the space.

The school's old admin area will be upgraded and used as the centre's administration hub and an area has been set aside for a computer suite that would provide agile working space for all users from the community.

"We have shown in our business plan that the scheme is innovative, that it is sustainable and that it is necessary to take such an insignificant risk in a climate where social unrest and inequality is rising," said Marion.

"Wouldn't it be nice to see local money being put to work locally to create lasting social and economic benefits - right across the social, cultural, ageist, economical, educational, political and spiritual divides? Some of us think so."

Marion explained that the old building will undergo a steam clean as soon as they move in so that they know where they are and what problems might be lurking under the surface.

Under the proposals, the large kitchen area will be adapted so that it can be used in a variety of ways.

"It's big enough to become a cooking school and could be used in a number of different ways to enable training to take place," Marion said.

"Or it could be used in connection with any functions being held in the centre."

The building has numerous self-contained areas that could be used for micro enterprises, which would come under the centre's umbrella.

One of these is the lower ground floor area, formerly the old staff room and storage area, which could easily be converted into a nursery unit. Its operation would be independent of the main centre and not disturb the activities going on in the rest of the building.

The largest of the classrooms is scheduled for conversion into a community arts project space with additional facilities so that workshops can be held.

Another room planned for conversion is to accommodate a music school, which will ultimately require sound-proofing.

And a language school has approached the directors to use the facilities once the centre is up and running.

"We are near to starting the renovation of this building, moving it away from being a 20th Century school for use as a centre fit for the 21st Century, but we want to retain as much of its historic character as possible."

Marion added, "There are different scenarios and objectives which we could undertake, but in the mean time we have to work with what we have got.

"We don't want to spend too much on some aspects of renovating the building because this would only be removed in the future as we have ambitious plans to enlarge the building with a new extension.

"Currently the building has a village hall feel to it and our aim is to take this to a new level by developing it into a centre which is at the heart of the local community.

"We are aware that we will need to make a number of additional alterations to comply with disabled legislation.

However the use of the main spaces has no limitations as it will be for the community to ultimately decide what goes on here."

The scheme is not just about being an adult education centre as there are plans for an after school children club and a Drop and Shop scheme at weekends where parents will be able to drop off their children to undertake a range of activities for an hour while the parents go shopping.

"We are not trying to repeat what is already going on in Abergavenny, although some aspects could be similar," Marion added.

"All projects have small beginnings and this is no different. It's a centre for the people right in the middle of the area in which we live. What better place to have a nursery than in a building where other activities are going on at the same time."

Another director Paul Downs said, "There are lots of skilful and talented people living locally who could benefit from the project as, in many situations, they are not being brought into contact with mentors or advisors.

"Our business plan has had an input from those in the know at the local authority to help us pass various financial hurdles.

"We still need help financially to refurbish the building and make adaptations to it so that it can be used by the whole community, but once this hurdle is out of the way, we should be self-financing.

"We are aiming to become completely self-sustainable by the third financial year with the help of an array of mini enterprises bringing revenue into the building to underpin the activities and ambitions of the centre and the trust."

Marion concluded, "This scheme has come out of our local knowledge of what is needed in this area. After all, we've raised children here and watched the older generation become elderly and they are a small section of the community who need somewhere to socialise on their doorstep.

"We are investing in people and not just a building. We'd love a big grant to carry out all the necessary work in one go, but this is unlikely and not realistic so we are carrying out our plan in phases."