AN URGENT appeal has gone out for more cash towards the rebuilding and refurbishment of Hutton Rudby Village Hall.

The project is £50,000 short of its target, despite fundraising efforts.

Organisers must sign the contract within the coming week and are appealing to businesses or individuals to act as guarantors for the amount, which the group expects to raise by autumn next year.

They are also searching for a sponsor for a garden room, which will be named after the benefactor.

Project manager, John Autherson, said the first two phases were fully funded, on budget and well under way. He said: "We need help to complete the final phase.

"The hall was built in the Twenties following many years of fundraising and many fascinating memories of the building have emerged.

"Wear and tear and the passage of time mean fundraising is once again needed to tackle a major rebuild of the hall, to continue its history and also provide modern facilities to the village."

Phases one and two of the project involved rebuilding the foundations, side walls and roof of the main hall and adding extra toilets, an entrance foyer, storage facilities and disabled access.

The final phase will see the rear rooms extended and restored and a garden room added to overlook the playground.

To help the fundraising, organisers are asking present and former villagers to contact them with memories, anecdotes or souvenirs relating to the hall and its 78-year history.

The contributions will be collected with a view to collating them as a booklet to be sold and for a wall display.

Items and facts already uncovered include an old fundraising book, memories of dances, a record of the army billeted in the hall at times of war and a Daily Express review of a pantomime staged there. To record a memory, contact Liz Crosskill on 01642 701202 or visit www.thevillagehall.com.

For details on acting as a guarantor or sponsor, contact Mr Autherson on 01642 700174 or Liz or Alan Crosskill on the above number.