MIDDLETON St George Methodist Church is likely to be turned into a luxury home instead of a village hall.

The church, which was built in 1869 and still retains many original features, had fallen into disuse owing to a lack of support and went on to the market in summer.

A group of villagers wanted to buy the property, which was open to offers of more than £80,000, but failed to get enough support.

Coun Doris Jones said: "Ideally it would have been nice for the village to buy the property and turn it in to a village hall for the community, but we simply could not raise the funds.

"Everyone in the village is fully aware that it has been sold to a developer and that it is likely to turn into a house and I don't think anyone has a problem with that. It is just unfortunate that it couldn't be kept as a village amenity."

Charminster Estates obtained the Methodist church, which is one of the oldest in the Darlington area, and plans to revamp it into a single dwelling.

Company director Roy Thompson said the church, in Station Road, had the potential to make an exquisite house.

"We want to make it into something rather special. It is a fabulous building, which has a lot of qualities and character," he said.

An application has been submitted to the borough council for planning permission to convert the church into a three-bedroom house. One drawback could be the double yellow lines and a bus stop outside the property, likely to make parking a problem.

Mr Thompson said: "The plans for the house include a large living room area stretching its entire height, with a gallery running around it. All the bedrooms will be en suite and there will be on-site parking."