A VOLUNTEERS' group, which has attracted nearly half a million pounds of investment into Darlington in the last year, has celebrated a landmark.

In the past year, Darlington Council for Voluntary Service and Volunteer Bureau has refurbished the 100-year-old premises in Church Row.

The organisation secured about £500,000 to convert the former borough council transport offices into three floors of offices, which are fully accessible to disabled people.

The achievement was marked with an annual meeting in the council chamber of the town hall.

The meeting, attended by representatives of groups from throughout the town, heard talks from Jane Brown, the chief executive of Darlington Partnership, and Professor Fred Robinson, of Durham University.

They stressed the role that voluntary groups had to play in influencing the local agenda - and urged them to remember that they were not just being invited to key meetings to make up the numbers.

Chairman of the group, Alan Coultas, told the meeting: "We have made major investments and it is my hope that these efforts will be acknowledged as a significant contribution to Darlington."