After 60 years of holding on, allotment holders in Guiseley are set to get some relief - with the planned installation of a toilet.

In the traditionally male preserve of working the land the time honoured custom has always been to last all day or to go al fresco.

But now with a growing number of ladies joining the Moor Lane Allotment Association the group is to finally get its own loo.

The toilet is being provided with the help of a £1,835 lottery grant - and is one of more than 200 local projects across Yorkshire and Humberside financed by Awards for All.

Moor Lane Association Secretary David Perry said the idea of an on-site toilet had been put forward by women members.

He said "I think traditionally allotmenting has been a male preserve, but we have a growing number of lady members these days and a lot of them come to the allotment with young families, I'm afraid the traditional method of going behind an old rhubarb patch is not really appropriate any more."

Mr Perry said the Moor Lane allotments had been in existence since the Second World War.

"I believe they go back to the Dig for Victory Campaign," he said. "One of our older members is in his 80s now and remembers coming home from leave in the army in about 1941 and helping his father to dig here."

Now he says working on the allotment is becoming increasingly popular again as people of all ages and all backgrounds become interested in the benefits of growing their own organic food.

The association has a waiting list of 14 people for its 30 plots.

"This toilet is going to be a lot pleasanter for the men as well as the women," he stressed.

l A grant of £4,224 has also been given through the Awards For All scheme to a local group which helps the elderly.

The Horsforth Live at Home Scheme offers support to older people to allow them to stay in their own homes independently.

The money will be used to run a weekly exercise class for the over 60s and to provide information on healthy eating and cooking.

Barbara McLaren, of the Horsforth Live at Home Scheme, said the scheme, which was set up six-and-a-half years ago and is based at the Central Methodist Church, aimed to help by arranging outings and activities.

"If an elderly person has had an illness or lost their husband or wife, they can lose their confidence and stay in. Just getting them out is important," she said.

"We aim to support elderly people who live in their own homes and to prevent social isolation."

Awards for All gives lottery grants of up to £5,000 to not for profit groups, connected with sports, arts, heritage, charitable activity, health, the environment or education.