CHURCH leaders could use a 55-year-old legacy to solve the problem of an overcrowded school and a deteriorating village hall, in a North Yorkshire village.

The number of children attending the Church of England primary school at Sutton-under-Whitestonecliffe, near Thirsk, has rocketed from 18 to 40, and the adjoining village hall has been turned into a second classroom.

Now an ambitious £300,000 plan is on the drawing board to build a new teaching area, which will double as a replacement village hall.

Residents of the village, at the foot of Sutton Bank, have given unanimous backing to the scheme and ways are being sought to fund the project.

Alec Hornsby, chairman of the school governors, said the plans had been given a boost by a 55-year-old legacy to the village, which has remained untouched and is worth £70,000.

Mr Hornsby said the original bequest of about £2,000 had been made by Evelyn Peake, who lived at Sutton Hall, and whose family owned large parts of the village.

The fund has grown over the years and is now administered by the York Diocesan Board of Finance as trustees.

Mr Hornsby said: "We desperately need more space.

"Over the past four years the number of pupils has risen dramatically. At the same time the village recognised that the hall was in need of repair or replacement."