THE opening of a new visitors' centre at the Sizewell nuclear site has been cleared with security officials, The previous Sizewell B visitors' centre was closed five years ago as a result of increased security in the light of heightened terrorism fears.H

owever, the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR), the UK nuclear safety and security agency, has approved plans by EDF Energy to open a temporary new centre.

Sizewell will be the first of the company's nuclear sites to re-open a visitors' centre.

Parties of visitors to the Sizewell centre, mostly school children, will have to be pre-booked.

Members of the public will be able to visit by appointment and the ONR will have the opportunity to undertake vetting procedures.

It is understood no visitors will be allowed inside the nuclear 'island' – the ultra secure area containing the nuclear generating plant, reactor cooling systems and control room.

The temporary centre, to be created by adding a glazed extension to two 'mobile' training classrooms, will be replaced with a new state-of-the-art, interactive visitors' centre if plans for a �6bn Sizewell C plant go ahead.

An EDF spokesman said: 'We are expecting to attract between 7,500 and 10,000 visitors each year. The majority of these are expected to be school trips for children of eleven years and upwards.'

The centre will be open from Monday to Friday, between 10am to 3pm. Additional opening on the weekends may be arranged.