RESIDENTS in Southampton are to have a say in the way more than £500,000 is spent on health services under new plans announced today.

Southampton's Primary Care Trust will be allocated a "community kitty" to fund health projects in the Thornhill area of the city as part of new plans revealed by Communities Secretary Hazel Blears. The scheme is also being trialed in nine other towns.

Every year for five years the PCT will be given £100,000 by the Government, and residents will be given the opportunity to take control of the budget through community-led debates, neighbourhood votes and public meetings.

Southampton has been chosen as one of ten pilot areas in the country to trial the new scheme.

The public is already invited to help allocate small pots of council cash according to local priorities.

But a series of schemes announced today will see that principle extended to about £20m of public money.

Neighbourhoods will be able to control how it is spent in areas ranging from key infrastructure projects and transport to leisure facilities and youth services.

Ms Blears, announcing the pilot areas, said: "Democracy should be about much more than casting a vote every few years. Local people know the needs of their area better than anyone.

"We want to bring devolution to the doorstep, giving communities a direct say over how to tackle the things that matter most to them - from improving playgrounds, to tackling litter, to making their street safer."