THE conversion of an old court room into a community arts space can go ahead thanks to a National Lottery grant.

The Arts Council has awarded £70,000 to Rural Arts North Yorkshire (Rany) to convert the former court room in Thirsk into a venue for exhibitions and concerts.

Jane Redfearn, of Rany, said: "We are delighted by this large amount of funding, which will allow us to start work on creating a flexible space for arts projects.

"We envisage it being used for activities such as workshops, training and concerts."

The grant is part of £632,958 the Arts Council announced yesterday which will be awarded to projects across Yorkshire.

Other organisation which will benefit include Hambleton District Council, which has received £19,000 to commission a work of art for the Springboard business park in Stokesley.

The Arts in Richmondshire project has received £5,000 to pay for choreographers Beth Cassani and Lucy Suggate to undertake contemporary dance workshops and performances at venues across Richmondshire in the spring.

The money will help the women continue their work in the community, which saw them working with GCSE pupils at Richmond School yesterday.

A further grant of £9,990 will be used to produce Sister Josephine Kicks the Habit, a musical that North Yorkshire writer Jake Thackray was working on at the time of his death in 2002.

The production will be performed at Helmsley Arts Centre, before heading off on a nationwide tour.

Andy Carver, the Yorkshire regional executive director of Arts Council England, said that the grants meant individual artists would be able to extend and develop their skills, and reach new audiences.

"The recent celebration of the National Lottery's tenth birthday reminded us of the power of the arts to change the lives of people living in this region," said Mr Carver.

"These latest awards will continue to make a real difference in our communities, enriching the lives of the people who live here, while individual artists are able to realise their artistic potential."