A PARISH council has asked for extra £65,000 loan to fix the roof of its village hall.

Ramsden Parish Council already got a £15,000 loan from West Oxfordshire District Council earlier this year to repair its memorial hall.

Villagers have also made a huge fundraising effort towards the job, with the council topping up the community's efforts to reach a £77,000 goal.

Alongside repairing the roof, the money was being used to improve heating, insulation, acoustics and seating.

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But now, the parish has asked West Oxfordshire's council to consider making its loan larger, to the tune of £80,000.

And the district council's cabinet, its most senior councillors, will discuss whether the loan should be increased when they meet today at 2pm.

According to a report prepared for the cabinet, 'the estimated cost of the scheme has changed' .

It added: "As work began, it soon became apparent that extra essential works were required on the hall, in addition to the original plan. The original budget and loan request is therefore insufficient to pay for the revised scheme."

The current loan the parish has from West Oxfordshire is being paid back over a 10-year period, but if the cabinet approved the larger amount, this would be extended to a 15-year period.

Ramsden Parish Council would pay back £2,994.50 to West Oxfordshire every six months, and it hopes to raise the local council tax precept to help meet the cost of this.

Before West Oxfordshire can lend out more money to help pay for the costs of fixing the memorial hall, permission is needed from the government.

When the original loan was agreed in February, it took until April for an announcement that Ramsden Parish Council would get the money.

Read again about the original 'cash boost' for the village hall here

West Oxfordshire District Council has had a 'Parish Council Loan Scheme' in place since 2011, to help villages and towns pay for large projects they might not otherwise be able to afford to carry out.

Across the UK, local authorities often lend money to one another.

Councils with large amounts of savings, known as reserves, will loan their money to other areas in need of funding because it is seen as a safe investment.