A POPULAR nature reserve is about to undergo a £300,000 revamp to revitalise park and improve the visitor experience.

Work is due to start this month at RSPB Saltholme, near Stockton, to refurbish three of its wildlife viewing structures, pools re-landscaped, and a new dragonfly boardwalk installed, which will weave visitors through meadow and grassland, and the construction of a brand new viewing pod.

Site manager Dave Braithwaite said: “We’re all very excited about the changes coming to the reserve. The improvements will not only make the wildlife viewing spectacle even better than it already is, but also improve the surroundings for birds and other wildlife.”

The first two hides to be updated – Paddy’s and Wildlife Watchpoint – are expected to be completed by the end of March, in time for the busy Easter season. Saltholme Pool’s hide, and the pools surrounding it, will be upgraded during the summer.

The planned re-landscaping and creation of new scrapes has been designed to improve the habitat for some of Saltholme's rarer species, but will also provide more opportunities for visitors to see them close up.

Saltholme received £300,000 in funding from the Teesside Environmental Trust (TET), the RSPB’s long term partners at the reserve, to carry out these works.

Mr Braithwaite added: “We’re not expecting any of the works to have a significant impact on the wildlife visiting the reserve, so would encourage everyone to continue visiting and take a sneak peek at the works as they unfold.”

The full programme of works will take three years to complete. There may be some disruption in the short term, but measures will be put in place to ensure this is kept to a minimum.

For further information follow Saltholme on Facebook – www.facebook.com/rspbsaltholmeandnortheast – or visit the website, www.rspb.org.uk/saltholme