AN ancient banner of Robin Hood is to be restored by residents in his namesake village on the North Yorkshire coast.

The 8ft tall banner is the only surviving relic of the Robin Hood and Little John Friendly Society at Robin Hood's Bay.

Now hanging in the village's museum, it is to be restored through a £1,200 scheme by the museum trustees.

The trustees have been given grants towards the work by the Yorkshire Museums Council and the North York Moors National Park Authority.

But curator Kath Roden said funds were still needed to reach the target.

"The society, founded in the early 1800s, was the forerunner of the National Health Service," she said.

Members paid in so much a week and it was used to provide them with sickness benefit when they fell ill and unable to work, or to provide money for their widows.

With the setting up of the NHS, membership gradually declined because they were unable to afford the National Insurance payments and the society subscriptions.

It eventually folded about 15 years ago when it became uneconomic because of the reduced numbers.

The banner, a full length portrait of Robin Hood, was painted on red wool worsted, in 1901 by the firm of Womersley and Company, of Leeds, said Mrs Roden.

"It is becoming fragile so the museum trust is having it cleaned and restored" she said.

The museum, in Fishergate, houses a wealth of artefacts relating to the historic fishing village and attracts thousands of tourists every year