THOUSANDS of pounds have been awarded to the region to make wildlife more accessible to people living in the North-East.
Five local authorities have been awarded a total of £310,000 from English Nature's Wildspace project.
The money will be used to increase the number of nature reserves in the region, and to create new ponds and plant wooded areas.
Darlington Borough Council, Durham County Council, Castle Morpeth Borough Council, Derwentside District Council and Northumberland County Council will share the money.
The five councils are expected to employ community liaison officers to encourage more people to get involved in setting up and visiting areas of natural beauty.
The officers will go into schools and visit public groups to increase awareness of their work.
Tony Laws, of English Nature, said: "We are delighted to fund and encourage the projects to help improve people's environment and quality of life, as well as bringing them into closer contact with wildlife.
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