PEOPLE in Liss will be given the chance to get a sneak peek inside the village’s newest venue ahead of its official opening in May.

Dozens of village firms and organisations will receive an invite to tour the West Liss Pavilion with the provisional date of April 26 being circled on the calendar.

The building is expected to open in May with East Hampshire MP Damian Hinds being given the honour of cutting the ribbon during the official opening ceremony.

Liss Parish Council (LPC) chairman Cllr Roger Hargreaves said that a "very long list" was being compiled of organisations and suppliers to invite to the opening.

LPC heard at their last meeting that construction was on track, and that all exterior work and interior fitting out should be finished by April 12.

A legal agreement between LPC and the Scouts has been drawn up while the kitchen is being fitted out to a higher specification than originally planned.

Councillor Roger Hargreaves, LPC chairman, told councillors that a larger fridge and dishwasher were necessary as villagers have enquired about renting the hall for wedding receptions and large parties.

"The budget is more or less on track but there will be a slight overspend, which is expected of a project this size," said Cllr Hargreaves at the full council meeting.

"On the fitting out of the facility, one of the things that has happened is we have improved the specifications for the kitchen as we know we’re going to get large parties because we’ve had enquiries about weddings.

"The fitting out is proceeding on track. Seven years on from starting out, and we’re getting enquiries and people are becoming very aware of it."

In an earlier report to members, Cllr Hargeaves said it looked as though there could be an over run of about £7,000 on the original build budget of £738,632 for the pavilion project.

He added that this was under one per cent of the budget, and was an "excellent" outcome given the difficulties of getting the specification right from the beginning.

He also added that the shortfall was partially down to an "inevitable need for amendments and additional essential items."