Upper Teesdale volunteers ensure vital tourist information service is offered to visitors (From Darlington and Stockton Times)

Upper Teesdale volunteers ensure vital tourist information service is offered to visitors

3:08pm Monday 18th March 2013 in News By Stuart Laundy, Reporter (Barnard Castle & Teesdale)

A TEAM of upper Teesdale volunteers are continuing to provide a vital service to the thousands of visitors who flock to the area.

Some 12,000 tourists headed to Middleton-in-Teesdale's volunteer-run tourist information centre last year.

The centre is run by the Middleton-in-Teesdale development trust MiddletonPlus and relies on the efforts of 15 volunteers.

Liam Bell, from MiddletonPlus, told members of the Teesdale Action Partnership (TAP) that a grant received from the group had helped free up a lot of volunteer time which could then be devoted to the tourist service.

“The TAP grant paid for a salaried accounts clerk, which meant the volunteers could spend more time front of house at the information centre.”

Mr Bell added: “The grant also went to resolve the broadband situation and brought MiddletonPlus forward from where we were three or four years ago.

"I don't know where would would have been without it.”