Now West Norfolk Council, along with Downham Town Council, Norfolk County Council youth services, the police and other agencies in the town, want to give the people of Downham a chance to say what they would like to see.

A public meeting, being held at the Town Hall in Downham Market, on Tuesday (June 24), at 6pm, will be open to anyone who wants to get involved.

Organisers will be on hand to discuss the options and there will be an opportunity to ask questions and a chance to see some of the equipment that could be installed in the Downham area. Officials will also be available to discuss activities that could be provided and to promote existing activities that are on offer.

Jackie Squires, community development officer for the borough council, said: "There is a real will to do something in Downham that will give young people somewhere that they can have fun, or just hang out with their friends – but we need to know what sort of facility they want and we also need to explore where it could be located. There's no point spending cash on a facility that young people won't use.

The public meeting is open to anyone in the area, whether young, old or in-between. Organisers want to find out people's views and to explore any ideas that they may have.

Luke Cox, the council's new community safety development officer, is looking specifically at positive activities that can help reduce anti-social behaviour.

He said: "Young people often get a bad press, purely because they are in the wrong place at the wrong time and the perception is that they are up to no good.

"Developing and promoting a range of activities for young people and giving them a place to go can really make a difference, but we need everyone to get involved in developing those activities.

"We would urge parents, grandparents, children, teenagers, people who are new to the town, people who have been here all their life and anyone interested in providing facilities for the town's young people to come along to this meeting and help us to put a plan of action together."

Kerry Heffernan, events co-ordinator at Downham Town Council, added: "What we really want to do is set up a youth council – a forum where young people can continue to tell us about their ideas and can work with the local authorities to make sure that their views are taken on board.

"We firmly believe that the success of any projects for young people in Downham will depend upon young people themselves getting involved from the start."