A REVISED completion date for a multi-million pound emergency services centre in a Furness town has been set.

Work on the Blue Light Hub at Ulverston was due to be completed in May but a meeting of Cumbria County Council's Cabinet heard it was now likely to be finished in December.

"Unfortunately, due to unforeseen ground conditions and difficulties with site conditions, the project is behind the original programme," said Cllr David Southward. "Work on site in the past few weeks has been noticeably slow due in the main to communication difficulties between the consultant and contractor and differences over responsibility for a range of design issues.

"County Council officers are working with both the designer and contractor to ensure that agreement is reached on these matters as quickly as possible to enable works to progress. It is anticipated that the agreement of a baseline position will be resolved in the next few weeks.

"At this stage, the build completion date of December 2018 remains achievable and council officers are working hard to mitigate any potential delays."

The Blue Light Hub, being constructed on land adjacent to the A590 opposite the junction with Daltongate, will be the headquarters for a host of emergency services based in the town.

It will replace the Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service base at The Ellers in Ulverston, take the place of North West Ambulance Service building on Victoria Road, provide additional facilities for Cumbria Police, and offer meeting rooms for use by the community.

Construction of the Blue Light Hub began in 2017. Its delivery was boosted by the securing £4.6m from the Department for Communities and Local Government.