A HISTORIC town hall is being given a new lease of life in an extensive facelift, with plans to encourage more people to use the building.

The £800,000 project to refurbish Durham Town Hall includes the creation of a new public entrance, complete disabled access and, for the first time, a fire protection system throughout.

Work carried out under listed building guidelines has also uncovered architectural features hidden for years by plasterboard and low ceilings.

Durham City Council hopes to make maximum use of the building, offering it for more corporate events, weddings and functions, with the completion of a kitchen.

The council's project manager, Mike Lee, said: "We are looking at ways of enhancing the experience of the public when they come to visit the town hall.

"We are trying to make it a much more pleasant experience, and we are trying to attract alternate uses for the building.

"We would like to encourage people to come and use it."

Mr Lee said people with disabilities have had difficulty getting into the building before.

He said: "We decided we needed to make it accessible.

"The work includes a new entrance on a level surface with a lift servicing the building's three floors."

Historic features revealed by the project include windows in the Burlison Art Gallery and another in a stairwell, which will now be incorporated into the building.

A low-level ceiling has been removed in the council leader's chamber, restoring it to its former "airy grandeur", while the new kitchen will be able to cater for several hundred people.

Mr Lee said the Guildhall and main hall have been left mainly untouched, apart from the installation of a fire protection system.

The site of the former Tourist Information Centre will be transformed into a public reception area, with oak-framed automatic doors.

It will include an IT system and projector providing tourists with information.

The overhaul, which began in the summer, is expected to be completed by January.