THE restoration of a County Durham lead mine has won an award for construction excellence.

The team behind the work carried out at Low Slit Mine near Westgate, Weardale, have received constructing excellence in the North-East's Heritage Award.

The project was funded under an environmental stewardship agreement between Natural England and the landowners, Malcolm and James Nattrass.

Low Slit Lead Mine is a disused lead mine on Middlehope Burn. It is designated a Scheduled Monument as it includes a well preserved concentration of lead mining features and has rare original features including the ore washing floor, where women and children separated the heavy lead ore from lighter waste minerals; a row of intact bouseteams, where the miners stored the lead they had brought out; and the base for an Armstrong hydraulic engine, which was the winding engine for the mine shaft.

Low Slit Mine is on the Heritage at Risk Register because of a series of longterm problems, including damage from ivy and tree growth, erosion of the washing floor by the stream, and leaching of the lime mortars resulting in the decay of standing structures.

The site forms part of a Site of Special Scientific Interest because of the rare, lead tolerant plants now growing on the washing floor.

Damaged structures have been rebuilt and the 587ft deep mine shaft has been re-capped, while a commemorative bench has also been installed.

Robert Burnett, Natural England's North of England regional manager, said: "An important example of the industrial heritage of the North Pennines and the rare plants that have subsequently colonised the site have been saved from further deterioration as a result of this work."