Scouts celebrated the opening of a new training centre given a £10,000 makeover by honouring the generosity of a local landowner six decades ago.

The Joseph Eaton Centre at Blackhills Scout Campsite, in Cottingley, Bradford, was named in tribute to Mr Eaton who owned the land when he first let Boy Scouts use the 60-acre site more than 60 years ago.

Mr Eaton's son and daughter-in-law, John and Margaret Eaton, who have continued the tradition after inheriting the land, were invited to the launch of the centre last Saturday to unveil a plaque.

Portable cabins donated by Hull Grammar School have been transformed into a modern training centre for Scout leaders and a venue for social events for scouts across the country.

The centre, set in woodland and open fields, is fitted with heating, a fully equipped kitchen, toilets and two main rooms, named Promise' and Law', to recognise the cornerstones of the Scout code, and are equipped with whiteboards and projector screens.

Joseph Eaton first allowed Bradford Scouts to use his land in 1946 after their patch in Thornton was turned into allotments for the war effort.

Mrs Eaton said: "It is a great honour, my husband was very moved. Joseph felt so much for the Scouts and this area and I know he would have been equally flattered.

"It is a wonderful facility and very tastefully put together by people who are committed to the Scouting movement."

Mark Stageman, development manager at the campsite, said: "It will be used as a base from which to train and develop leaders and young people, and we will be running environmental and conservation projects for young people."

John Reynolds, the Scout's district commissioner, said: "Hull Grammar School needed to get rid of a portable building and a Scout leader, who is a demolition consultant, asked us if we wanted it. Scouts and their leaders helped install the building on the foundations.''