The village that bought its 150-year-old chapel

The County Durham chapel will be turned into a cafe and heritage venue

A 19th Century chapel has been bought by villagers after a three-year campaign to bring it back into use.

The former Methodist chapel in Cotherstone, County Durham, is set to be transformed into a shop, cafe and a heritage centre.

It is also expected to create a number of jobs and voluntary roles, once the renovation is complete.

More than £115,000 was raised by members of the community, while Durham County Council has paid £180,000.

'A big relief'

The church had served as a place of worship for almost 150 years, but permanently closed in 2020.

The Cotherstone Old Chapel Project was set up in a bid to save the building, with more than 280 people investing in shares.

"It’s a great, exciting time and we can start to make progress now,” Chris Tarpey, its treasurer, said.

"We've been trying for three years - but it's a big relief. This is where the hard work starts, there's a lot of work to do, to get it up and running".

Chris Tarpey said about 1,000 drivers pass through the area every day

In the next few months, work will take place to renovate its roof, replace windows and transform the interior.

Mr Tarpey said he was "confident" it would thrive when it opens.

He said: "There was a shop in the village until three years ago, a café a few years before that - both were profitable businesses and closed down for lifestyle reasons.

"There’s enough people who live in the village – it’s on a road through up the Dale and about 1,000 cars go through the village per day, either for work or tourism."

It has taken three years to purchase the chapel

About £120,000 of the council's funding has come from its Towns and Villages Community Resilience Fund, part of a £4.2m scheme across County Durham.

Meanwhile, councillors Richard Bell and Ted Henderson have made £20,000 available, while the Teesdale Area Action Partnership has paid £40,000.

Mr Bell, a Durham county councillor, said: “[Cotherstone] has two good pubs and a church, but it has no shop anymore.

"In fact, there are no shops or cafes from Middleton to Barnard Castle on south side of the River Tees - so this would be a focus, not just for the village, but neighbouring villages, providing much needed facilities".