A SOUTH South Lakeland church hall is cooking up a warmer welcome for users after securing a four-figure grant to upgrade its kitchen and toilet facilities.

The committee at Firbank Church Hall, near Sedbergh, did not have the resources required to fund the work – but a £4,400 grant from the Banks Renewables community fund has seen the kitchen enlarged and upgraded.

An adjoining toilet has also been refurbished to provide full access for disabled hall users and a new water heater is set to be installed.

Local builder Alan Steadman was awarded the contract for the work, and used other local tradesmen for the refurbishment.

Firbank Church Hall is used by a number of different groups for functions ranging from domino drives to WI meetings, and is also available for hire.

Banks Renewables is the company behind the Armistead wind farm on land near Old Hutton and looking to develop the proposed Killington scheme on land between the A684 Sedbergh Road and the M6.