A £3m scheme to revamp a shopping centre will help it compete with the region's major shopping centres, according to a leading councillor.

Royal and Sun Alliance, which owns Middlesbrough's Hill Street Centre, has announced it is to spend the cash on improving the interior.

Proposals include enhancing the decor, new lighting and brightening up the centre with skylights and a new colour scheme.

The centre's focus will be a new caf in Central Square, one of its busiest areas. It is hoped that the caf will open later this summer, although an operator is yet to be found.

The refurbishment, which has already begun with the erection of hoardings and scaffolding, will be divided into several phases.

Noisy work will be undertaken out of hours, with the whole scheme due to be completed by mid-October.

Middlesbrough Borough Council's commissioner for regeneration and housing, councillor John Jones, said: "This is certainly a bonus for the town. Such a large amount of money can only be good for the area. The centre is already popular, and this can only build on that.

"If we are going to attract people to the town, we have to encourage people to bring the shopping centres up to higher standards. There is nothing to stop us having centres that are equally as good as Newcastle or Gateshead."

Royal and Sun Alliance Property Investments bought the centre's freehold from Middlesbrough council in January, after the council decided it would be better off in private hands.

Ian McLelland, the centre's manager, said: "We are consistently looking to improve the shopping experience for customers, and new investment such as this is of huge assistance."

Marks and Spencer, one of the centre's anchor stores, has recently announced proposals to carry out its own refurbishment