COMMUNITY groups in a Teesdale village are joining together in the hope of building a new village hall costing up to £1.7m.

Middleton-in-Teesdale villagers have got behind the project after they found out Durham County Council would have to spend more than £140,000 on repairs of their existing building, in Gas Lane, which is more than 50 years old.

It follows a meeting held by the Upper Teesdale District Community Association (UTCA) last year, which asked residents if they would back plans to replace the building with a new facility.

Now, along with the Upper Teesdale Agricultural Support Services (UTASS) and the county council, the three bodies are looking at whether a new state-of-the-art building would be feasible.

Julian Robinson, of the association, said the project already had the backing of the local school and could be a worthwhile asset, with Durham County Council agreeing to ring-fence the repair money to put towards a new facility.

The building would be used by existing clubs and the Teesdale community, which could save residents having to travel to Barnard Castle to access services, such as after school clubs.

Mr Robinson said the association had agreed to take on a five-year lease of the existing building while proposals for the new centre were worked out so residents could still use the hall in the interim period, but they needed people to get behind the project which could include an increase in fees so the extra money could be raised.

“The problem we have got is that the old hall we have, the council want rid of that, but we also want to keep it going in the interim,” he said.

“They are offering a five-year lease and they want to hand everything over to us, including the repairs, maintenance and insurance, so the problem we have got now is to raise the fees substantially just to cover costs for the years ahead.”

He added: “We are talking about big money and it’s whether we can get the support in the interim to warrant a new one.”

Gordon Elliott, Durham County Council’s head of partnership and community engagement, said: “We are continuing to work closely with local residents to explore a number of options with the aim of continuing community activities in the village.

“We are delighted with the level of commitment given by local volunteers in supporting this project and working in partnership with us and other local organisations towards a shared goal.”