A YOUTH advice service which operates throughout the New Forest is going to be closed and merged with Hampshire County Council's children's services department.

Connexions, which provides invaluable information and counselling in Fordingbridge, Ringwood, Lymington and New Milton, will cease to exist from April 1 next year.

County councillor David Kirk, responsible for children's youth services, said: "We do not anticipate redundancies among front line staff of Connexions or the youth service."

The change is being made for several reasons.

From April the government will channel funding through the county council instead of to the Connexions Partnership.

The government also wants local authorities to increase diversity of their services to young people.

Cllr Kirk said: "We will be connecting existing provision for young people with the children's services department to ensure that the young people of Hampshire have access to universal services such as safe places where they can meet and socialise, opportunities to access information, advice and guidance and the chance to engage in democratic processes.

"Equally important, we want services that offer support to be accessible for all, such as specialist information, advice, guidance and intensive individual support and group work."

Now the county council is talking to teenagers, schools, colleges, employers, voluntary organisations, carers and parents to discover how to shape the new service.

Connexions currently opens at 5 Monmouth Court, Ringwood from 1.30pm to 6.30pm on Tuesdays, 10.30am to 12.30pm on Wednesdays and from 11.30am to 2pm on Fridays.

At Fordingbridge, the service is run from the pavilion in the skate park from 3pm to 4.30pm on the first Thursday of the month, at Lillington House, New Street, Lymington, from 10am to noon on Mondays and from 4pm to 6.30pm on Wednesdays.

In New Milton, Connexions is at the Youth Centre in Culver Road between 1pm and 3pm on Thursdays.