A £3.8million development of Wokingham Town Centre is set to get underway.

Next month eight months of building will begin at Market Place, with the work undertaken in phases and to finish in March 2018.

The aim of the Wokingham Borough and Wokingham Town councils joint project is to spruce up the centre, through new additions including a 'continental style' restaurant space and a row of semi-mature trees, and improve the traffic and pedestrian flow of Market Place.

Wokingham Town Mayor Councillor Gwynneth Hewetson said: "Our newly refurbished Market Place will be a fantastic heart of the town where we can all enjoy sunshine, coffee, food and entertainment and I am looking forward to sharing it with you.

"You will see a lovely new space, paved with beautiful natural York stone, more even with trees in proper tree pits, a Market Place that provides a beautiful setting for our Town Hall and all the heritage buildings that frame it.

"Wokingham is one of the best places in the country to live and this improvement will make it even better.

"In the meantime let’s all support our businesses in town while we work to make the new space a reality."

The councils identified a number of issues with Market Place they want to correct, such as poor quality pavements with tree root damage, a dangerous bus lane and challenging access for disabled people.

The bus lane with be removed, additional disabled parking bays for short-stay evening parking will be installed and more benches will be added.

The Town Centre will remain open for the duration of the works.