A decaying toll house in a Warwickshire village is to be restored to its former glory after villagers received a £49,900 Heritage Lottery Fund grant.
The curved 19th Century Grade II listed building was given to Bourton-on-Dunsmore, near Rugby, in 1971 and forms part of the village hall for the small communities of Bourton, Draycote and nearby Frankton.
Restoration work is due to start in the next few weeks when local firm Symon Construction will be restoring the Gault brick with ashlar dressings on the bowed building, which also has a curved verandah on the front.
The work is expected to take until October and will also include later extensions to the village hall removed and replaced. The two sections will be joined using a glazed link, allowing the toll house's unusual shape to be revealed.
Village hall committee chairman Jeremy Patton said years of planning to repair the building have paid off.
He said: "The Toll House is very down at heel at the moment. It's a fascinating building with a colourful history. It's been used as a toll house, a laundry for the big estate, an overflow school in the Second World War as well as a private house.
"It's in a very prominent position facing the road and is the first building people see as they enter the village so it's especially important that we restore it.
"But over the years the windows have been bricked up and a Nissan hut attached to it to create the village hall. It's been used as the kitchen and toilets for the hall but this restoration will change all that.
"The kitchen will be moved out and the Toll House made into a meeting space which will form a great place for community activities. This is the only hall for the 700 or so residents of the three villages and is an important part of community life."
The HLF grant will also be used to create a display of the history of the building and the local area which will be exhibited in the Toll House.
An overgrown pond opposite will be rejuvenated and made into a wildlife haven and village feature. The hall is also well known for a First World War naval shell which was given to the school and forms the centrepiece of the garden.
