A bid to establish Frome's first dedicated indoor climbing centre has been given the green light.

It is the dream of three local climbers: brought together by their love of the sport.

Two of those behind the project met while climbing in Spain, Charly Andrew and Niall Andrews, while their third partner, and charity boss, Ben Burt, is also a keen climbing fan.

They have just had some good news from their planning application to build a bouldering centre in the town.

Mendip District Council has approved the planning application submitted by Charlotte, as the representative of Frome Boulder Rooms, for the change of use of the former Repleo distribution centre at Wallbridge Mills Industrial Estate.

Indoor bouldering is a form of rock climbing on artificial rock walls - no higher than 4.5m - without the use of ropes or harnesses.

After traversing to the top, climbers either backtrack or make a controlled fall onto the safety matting below.

A document supporting the application states: "To open a climbing centre for the specific discipline of bouldering, we need a relatively open space with an approximate floorspace of 10 to 15,000 sq ft.

"This would be considered in the industry as a medium-sized climbing centre, which we feel Frome and the surrounding towns could facilitate.

"Frome is the exact community we wish to place our project and Wallbridge is actually the only suitable property we have found.

"We intend to employ a minimum of four members of staff from opening, with hopes to increase this greatly as the business grows.

"From talking to the other business owners on the estate, they feel that the change of use would be very beneficial in bringing custom to their own businesses, allowing them to thrive, and we have had very positive talks with them about the potential of this project."

The plan also received considerable interest from local parents, schools, charities and 'military presence' in the area as a great place for groups, courses and events, explains the document.

"We feel very lucky to have such strong and ongoing support for the project from Frome Council and the wider community and feel confident that Wallbridge Mills is the right place for us to bring these old buildings back to life, with an exciting new use that would benefit the community at large," it adds.

Most of the indoor space will house the bouldering centre and a children's indoor play space, but there will also be a small cafe, changing area, reception and seating area.