A RESERVOIR steeped in history is to be restored to its former glory thanks to volunteers who have secured £23,000 of funding.

Blue Lake, at Hutton Lowcross Woods, Guisborough, was built in 1880 as a source of water to drive turbines at nearby Home Farm.

It is badly silted up, but work to dredge it is planned for June, thanks to the grant from the Local Heritage Initiative, which is run by the Countryside Agency.

Repairs to the spillway and pipework will be carried out by a team of volunteers, spearheaded by Friends of Home Farm.

Hazel Merigold, one of the volunteers, said: "We want to involve everyone we can in this.

"We started work on getting the funding last year. It's very exciting and it's going to be a very big project."

A public meeting about the project is to be held in Highcliffe School, Hutton Lane, Guisborough, on Tuesday at 7pm.

For further information, call (01287) 637259.