A PETITION has been launched for a stay of execution on Northleach's Old Prison.

It is Cotswold District Council's first live website petition.

And it asks the local authority to postpone its plan to sell the "jewel of its portfolio of owned assets" until December 2012.

The council claims it can no longer afford to run the site, but the petition needs more than 850 signatures to trigger a full council debate.

Concerned Diana Ray, who started the petition, said the grade two* listed building had so much potential.

"There hasn't been a chance for people locally to have a say and to come up with other viable options for this important site and historic collections," she said.

"We're asking for sufficient time for open and fair public consultation."

The landmark base on the A429 Fosseway houses the recently-opened Escape to the Cotswolds discovery centre, part of the Lloyd Baker Rural Life Collection, and visitors can also see the original cells and courtroom.

Sole surviving tenant, Cotswolds Conservation Board, which manages the area of outstanding natural beauty, has applied for £1.3 million to the Heritage Lottery Fund to develop it as a vibrant visitor centre. Ms Ray, who lives in Cold Aston, said the district council should await the crucial decision's outcome.

She added: "It's the jewel within the portfolio of CDC-owned assets and there is nothing else like it. It's a valuable community resource, used by young and old alike, which not only encourages understanding of our history but also supports exploration of all that our beautiful area – and AONB – has to offer.

"The site has special historic interest nationally as an early example of a model prison with so much to see. It's also the site of a collection of rural artefacts of immense cultural importance, locally and nationally."

Northleach Town Council chairman Neil Fletcher called the petition a "fantastic idea".

The district council introduced the local petitions scheme on July 6, 2010 and the e-petitions facility went live on November 30, 2010.

It is marketing the building through property agents Bruton Knowles as a "retail, leisure or residential opportunity".

A spokesman said it would consider the CCB's bid with any others.

The petition can be found at http://epetitionscotswold.firm step.com/petitions/.