A COMPANY has come to the aid of pot-holers after they lost their funding for new equipment.

Durham University's Speleological Society was given £1,000 by gas pipeline company Transco to buy new head lamps.

The society's president, Chris Franklin, said the group tended to lose out on funding to more high-profile competitive sports.

"We think it is important that young people get the chance to try out sports like ours to see whether they like them.

"We have some equipment that we can lend to members who don't have their own but it needs to be replaced regularly for safety reasons.

"This year we needed to replace some of our head lamps, which fit onto our helmets.

"These are expensive at up to £100 each. Unfortunately our main support grant was cut to just £150.

"Transco's donation of £1,000 will hopefully last us two or three years and will mean we can buy lamps that will not need replacing for another decade.''

Transco's customer manager Tina Price said the company was keen to support local organisations. She said: "Caving is not my cup of tea but it is good to know that young people can try their hand at it in complete safety.''