BIG improvements are on the way for leisure facilities in a small community.

Hambleton District Council has helped secure recreational land for the village of Faceby, near Stokesley.

The sale of the land, next to the village hall, has been finalised after the authority gave the Village Hall Trust a grant of £25,000 to add to the £5,000 raised locally.

It was the third grant to be won by the trust - another £6,800 will help develop phase two of an improvement plan for the village hall and Hambleton council earlier provided £3,700 for phase one.

That work saw the hall - the village's only community facility - undergo extensive refurbishment with a kitchen, toilets and disabled facilities.

A gas-fired heating system was also installed, along with insulated plasterboard walls to overcome the thermal disadvantages of solid brick walls in the old structure.

Phase two sees a modest extension to provide better storage facilities, as well as improvements to lighting and car parking.

"We are very keen to support well-organised and committed community organisations like Faceby," said the district council's leisure spokesman Neville Huxtable.

"The Village Hall Trust has an excellent track record in running its affairs. We have worked with them to take this opportunity to invest in the future of the village."

The secretary of the trust, Liz Sudron, said: "We are truly grateful for the support we have received from Hambleton District Council.

"Along with local contributions and help from private trusts it enabled us to obtain Millennium Commission backing, both for the original refurbishment programme and these further enhancements to the project.

"The outdoor recreational area is a major investment in the future of the village."

Both projects will be completed before next spring.