THE Rowntree family left this city many wonderful legacies. There is the chocolate factory, of course, which still employs hundreds of local people; New Earswick; Rowntree Park; and the series of charitable trusts which still carry Joseph Rowntree’s name.

But the family also bequeathed the city a magnificent art deco theatre. The Joseph Rowntree Theatre in Haxby Road, which opened in November 1935, was built by the Joseph Rowntree Village Trust to provide “a hall that may be a fitting centre for those recreational and educational activities that make for a full and happy life.” And it has been doing just that under a succession of owners - Rowntrees, Nestlé and York St John University - ever since.

Today it is the home of the Rowntree Players, as well as offering space to more than 30 other local performing groups.

But while York St John has been a good landlord, the committee of volunteers who operate the theatre have been reluctant to invest in improvements because the lease runs out in 2025. There was one simple solution: buy the theatre outright. And that is precisely what the volunteers have done.

They formed a charity in 2001 to run the theatre and, following a period of fundraising and with the help of a legacy, have now bought the building.

How great is that. The charity is already planning to improve public areas of the theatre, says chairman of trustees Dan Shrimpton. But more than that, the theatre is now independent and its future is secure for years to come.

“The theatre will continue to be a valuable community facility, run by the community for the community,” Mr Shrimpton said. We’re sure that’s exactly what the Rowntree family would have wanted.