A WELL-loved place of worship nestling in the heart of a St Helens suburb has launched an ambitious project to build a new community centre.

St John's Church, Ravenhead, is hoping to raise £400,000 to extend its premises in Crossley Road following an in-depth survey of pressing concerns and needs.

This revealed that children lack a meeting place; an advice and information centre is needed for parents; and a job-seeking advice facility is recommended for young people, as is a luncheon club for the elderly.

The church has already raised £80,000 and a further £50,000 has been pledged, but a further £270,000 is still needed in order that the dream becomes a reality.

Said Vicar Reverend Roy Doran: "We want to support the entire community because it is important that the facilities are used by everyone.

"The venture is a big thing for everyone at St John's and we are naturally very excited about it, and another spin-off is that it will create three new jobs for the area."

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