ANGLERS have received £3,000 worth of funding to help towards the creation of two fishing ponds at a nature reserve in Darlington.

The donation has come as welcome news to members of the Firthmoor Community Partnership (FCP), which has pushed for the development of the Maidendale Nature Reserve.

The funding has been made jointly by house-builders Barratts Homes and Haslam Homes, which are helping to regenerate the area with a major new housing project.

Darlington Borough Council has allocated about £300,000 for the creation of the nature reserve, with the ponds alone costing £90,000 to build.

Due to be completed within a couple of years, the scheme will also include landscaped parkland with cycle tracks and walks and an eco-friendly building for anglers to store their fishing tackle.

Ian Thompson, a keen fisherman and chairman of the FCP, said he was delighted that the nature reserve project had finally got off the ground.

"We believe the nature reserve will be a big attraction for residents from all parts of Darlington, not just Firthmoor," he said.

The nature reserve will also be a haven for many species of wildlife and will continue to be home to the protected great crested newt.