Members of a church congregation have helped redecorate the school, which gave them a new home when they had to move because an insurance company could no longer insure their Victorian building.

The Church of Saint Laurence in the Parish of Middleton Saint George, near Darlington, in the Diocese of Durham, moved to St George’s Church of England Voluntary Aided Primary School in the village after the insurance company withdrew cover in 2008. The decision came after several falls of roof plaster, some of which came down into the nave, and the porch was also deemed unsafe. Church Commissioners have since agreed that the church should be closed for worship.

Since moving to the school, the congregation has thrived with numbers regularly exceeding 100.

Over half-term week, ten congregation members a day painted parts of the school, including the corridors. Several children from the youth section of the church also took part and supporting the effort were workers from Darlington engine company Cummins.

Vicar of the parish The Reverend Paul Neville said: “This kind of thing is part and parcel of our partnership with the school, the school is part of the church and the church is part of the school. This is the third time we have done some of the redecorating.

“Church folks were happy to help out. It is a real good news story for the community. It’s all about people working together.”

Ann Williams, congregation member and also the school’s chair of governors, said: “The congregation heard the school needed some decorating doing and we were happy to help out.

“Doing the work saves the school money, which can be used to buy resources for the children. It is the church’s way of giving something back to the school.”

Released on behalf of the Diocese of Durham