THE redevelopment of East Oxford Community Centre will now be much bigger after more funding was found for the project.

Residents backed a £2.3m redevelopment of the Princes Street community centre last year but asked councillors to explore ways to increase the budget.

New land values, based on increasing the residential density of plans, have now upped that budget to £3.7m.

In addition to the refurbishment of the old school and a new two-storey building, the Fusion Arts building will be demolished and replaced with another two-storey building and a better outdoor space.

The council revealed it could now include some student accommodation and that there was still a £400,000 funding gap.

The council's board member for communities, Dee Sinclair, said: "This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to create successful modern facilities at East Oxford Community Centre, so we are making sure we get it right."