A NORTH Durham community has set up a voluntary association to provide high quality training in traditional rural crafts and the prospect of long-term employment.

The Burnhope Association for Rural Crafts (Barc) in Derwentside will teach skills such as dry stone walling, willow craft and hedge laying.

Association chairman Barry Barron said: "The aim is to preserve these crafts and the countryside and to help long-term unemployed people back to work, and to supply the demand for people with these skills.

"Burnhope is in a deprived area and there are grants available.

"We have already arranged the first of a series of taster courses in dry stone walling and if there is enough interest we will look at providing accredited training."

Mr Barron said the group had raised funds to carry out this work and had now secured money to begin training programmes - the first being a taster course in dry stone walling on September 1 and 2.

He said: "Tutors have already been engaged and the required ten people have signed up for the first course.

"Barc are anxious to keep the momentum going and to sign more people for subsequent courses.

"They are provided free for people who are unemployed and others may have to pay a nominal registration fee of £5.

"We are looking at holding hedgelaying courses later in the year, probably around October."

Mr Barron said, with farmers taking stewardship of the countryside, there would be more money available for work and the prospect of more employment opportunities.

He said the courses would be run in Burnhope on land owned by Terry Deary, the author of The Horrible Histories series of children's books and committee member of Barc.

All safety equipment will be provided by Barc.

Mr Barron said Barc had been helped to get established by Community Enterprise Direct, Derwentside Learning Partnership, which provided tools, Durham Rural Community Council and the Coalfields Regeneration Trust, which contributed £9,000.

To register for future courses in dry stone walling or hedgelaying contact Mr Barron on (01207) 521813.

Applicants do not have to be from the Burnhope area.