A £13.5 million youth facility has been proposed for Peterborough's Embankment.

But that figure does not mean the money is in the bank, construction is ready to start or the final building has been signed off.

The proposal is for a purpose-built Peterborough Youth Zone beside the Key Theatre, near Bishops Road car park.

It is being developed by Peterborough City Council with OnSide Youth Zones, a charity that runs similar youth facilities elsewhere in the country.

Here's what the current plan says, who it is meant to serve and what still has to happen before anyone can walk through the doors.

First, this is not the existing Youth Hub. The name is easy to muddle.

Peterborough already has a Youth Hub at Weston Homes Stadium on London Road.

That is an employment and training service for people aged 16 to 24.

The proposed Youth Zone would be a different thing: a large, dedicated leisure and support centre aimed primarily at young people aged 8 to 19, with access for young people up to 25 who have additional needs.

The idea is to provide somewhere young people can go regularly, rather than offering one isolated activity or a short-term project.

The supporting council documents outline a seven-day operating model and more than 20 potential activities.

What could be inside?

The suggested facilities include a four-court sports hall, boxing ring, dance studio, sensory room, a space with controlled light, sound and textures, arts and crafts space, fitness facilities, performing arts areas and support for young people's mental and physical health.

That is a broad mix.

A teenager interested in boxing would not be using the building in the same way as a young person looking for a quiet sensory space, a dance class or help with their wellbeing.

The proposed Youth Zone is intended to put those options under one roof.

These are suggested facilities but as we know with the local swimming pool project and others in the past, the suggestion and final reality are often significantly different.

The facility schedule is not final, and there is no confirmed opening date. The concerns we have heard voiced are could this be another Peterborough is getting a university situation and take 30 years plus.

Or end up like the Hilton hotel fiasco after all the local council do have form for failed & delayed projects.

Detailed design and planning work still has to progress before the public can know exactly what will actually built.

What does the £13.5m cover?

The latest report to the cabinet, the councillors responsible for major executive decisions, estimates the capital cost, the money needed to create and equip the building, at around £13.5 million.

That includes professional fees, construction and fitting out the building.

It is an estimated requirement, not money already spent.

 An earlier bid for £8.7 million from the Youth Investment Fund was unsuccessful.

The council says £384,500 of Shared Prosperity Funding has already been used for earlier design, consultancy and engagement work, but that is a long way from paying for the whole project.

Local Cabinet has approved up to £360,000 from reserves, money the council has set aside, for OnSide to progress the project through the next design and planning stage.

It has also approved £50,000 for professional services.

Those sums allow the scheme to move forward. They do not fund construction.

The council is seeking outside money, including through the proposed Better Youth Spaces fund.

Until that funding is secured, the £13.5 million remains the price tag attached to the proposal rather than a confirmed building budget.

The bigger bill comes after the building

The capital cost is only half the story.

The council estimates the Youth Zone would cost around £1.5 million a year to run, with about 80% of that expected to go on staff.

That sounds like a very large annual commitment, but a youth centre of this type needs people to supervise activities, provide support and keep the building open across the week.

The question for Peterborough is how that running cost would be covered over time.

The current plan refers to grants, charitable donations, council support and other income.

The final funding package and long-term operating arrangements have not been agreed.

OnSide is the proposed partner and operator, subject to the project progressing.

The council needs a plan for both costs.

Finding £13.5 million would get the doors open. Finding around £1.5 million every year would keep them open.

What happens next?

The council has authorised progress to the RIBA Stage 3 design and planning work. 

This is the stage in the Royal Institute of British Architects' process when the building's layout and main design elements are coordinated in more detail.

A planning application has not yet been issued, so there is no planning reference, approval or confirmed construction timetable to point to.

The next tests are clear: does the Better Youth Spaces application succeed, can the full construction budget be assembled, does planning permission follow, and can the council and OnSide agree how the centre will be governed and paid for?

There is also a more basic test for the finished building: do young people actually get the mix of activities, access and support they need?

The consultation and design process will have to answer that, not just produce an impressive-looking floor plan.

For now, Peterborough has a defined proposal, a proposed site and a reported price.

 It does not yet have a fully funded, approved or scheduled Youth Zone.

If the project moves ahead, the detail will decide its value: what opens first, who can use it, how easy it is to reach and how long the money lasts.

Tell us what Peterborough's next youth facility would need to provide for young people to use it regularly.