ONE of Middleton St George's oldest buildings is to be restored to its former glory.

On Monday, the parish council accepted an offer from private property developer, Charminster Developments, to renovate the derelict meeting room in the water park.

The company delivered a visual presentation showing what repair work would be carried out to the exterior and interior of the building.

Co-owner of Charminster Developments Gary Rutherford said: "We are converting the Methodist chapel next door into a five-bedroomed home.

"The parish council has been very supportive and we wanted to do something for them to show our appreciation.

"The building is the first thing people see when they walk into the water park and we thought it would be nice to give something back to the community. I cannot think of a more worthy project.

"Our trump card is our ability to show to someone how the project will look when it's completed, and the designs took everyone's breath away.

"They will give us something specific to work towards."

The developers plan to restore a repeating diamond structure on the outside of the building.

They will also rid the property of its damp problems and will revamp the facilities and provide a new lighting scheme inside.

"It will be great to bring the building back to life and restore it to its former glory. It will look absolutely wonderful," said Mr Rutherford.

"We will run the work along side the chapel while the resources are there.

At the moment the building is being cleared out and we would anticipate starting the work in the next fortnight. It should be completed in a four week period."

The company will also install security cameras to cover the approaches to the building and entrance to the water park.

Ward councillor and parish council chairman Doris Jones said: "The village is losing its identity and the boardroom is one of the few existing buildings that belongs to the old Middleton St George village.

"A lot of people have been looking at what the company has been doing in the village and they have done a good job.

"It's a lovely old meeting room and it would be a shame if it had to be demolished because it had gone to rack and ruin.

"The work is at a price we can afford and there are lots of organisations in the village which will be able to use it to meet.