A BRANCH of Scouts is desperately calling on local businesses and the public to help repair its cabin.

The 7th Darlington Sea Scouts uses its summer cabin, situated on Raby Estate, near Staindrop, up to 20 times a year.

The building itself is close to its 70th birthday and over the years use and weather have started to take its toll.

Anthony Gibson, Assistant Scout Leader at the branch, said: “It’s a building that we use fairly regularly. We run a scout camp once a month, we run a cub camp alongside this and we run a beavers camp once a year.

“Across the three sections we have got about 75 children that are going up regularly. Going forwards, the building is in need of a lot of repair. It’s worse than we thought."

The cabin, made almost entirely out of wood, has become rotten with some of the panels coming away - just one part of the work that needs to be done.

As the branch is ran entirely on a voluntary basis, any money the Scouts raise goes towards activities and running the group meaning they are struggling to fund the cabin's repair.

Mr Gibson said: “We’re looking for materials and help. We have got some little bits and pieces, people have made some small donations, and we have had a couple of companies that have provided bits. We also need people that are handy to come and help with the work.

"We have put a letter out to about 60 or 70 businesses in the area asking for help, but if anybody has anything, any support that we can get for the project will be fantastic."

Some of the materials needed for the repair include 30 sheets of smart plywood, five-star wood treatment and breathable roofing membrane, as well as people to help complete the project.

Mr Gibson added: “Even if someone wants to come for the day and make cups of tea for the people working, even that would be a great help. If someone wants to give us even a pound, that’s fine."

The Sea Scouts recently suffered a blow to their project when money intended for the cabin's repair had to be spent on their minibus after it was damaged by vandals.

The group sacrificed £150 of their funds to repair the wing-mirror that was kicked off by a man in the early hours of Monday morning.

Mr Gibson said: "Just three weeks ago it was MOT’d so we didn’t really want to have to spend that money on the minibus.

"The kids had been doing some sponsored walks to raise money for the cabin, and we had to spend it on repairing the minibus."

Mr Gibson added that the money lost means the scouts will have to work twice and hard to get the money back, making their appeal more urgent than ever.

Anyone who has materials, time or funds they could donate to the project are asked to contact Mr Gibson on 07791 477426 or email gsl@7thdarlingtonseascouts.org.uk