A SCHEME to give a north Durham village a facelift worth £55,000 gets under way next week.

Work will start to improve the appearance of New Kyo, near Stanley, after funding was secured.

The project is being run as part of Durham County Council's urban and rural renaissance initiative (Urri).

It will involve a number of small-scale improvement projects throughout the village, including new bus shelters, fencing and planting.

New Kyo was identified for the Urri Minor Schemes Programme, which guaranteed funding of up to £25,000.

This was then used to secure an additional £25,000 from Derwentside District Council and £5,000 from the Green Corridor Neighbourhood Partnership.

The project has been developed by Groundwork West Durham and the group has worked closely with New Kyo and Oxhill Partnership, to ensure the work meets the needs of the local people.

Local young people will be involved, through workshops with an artist, to design panels on the fencing which will run along the main road through the village.

Final plans were agreed with the community in the autumn and work will be completed before the end of March.

For information, call Kath Ivens at Groundwork West Durham on (01207) 693202.