An Ellesmere Port based community group has had a welcome grant from a supermarket giant.

The Friends Of Rivacre Valley have been awarded £12,000 in the first round of ‘Bags of Help’ funding from Tesco.

The group has been in being for less than 12 months and is to use the award to improve the Rivacre Valley local nature reserve, a 300 acre green oasis of woodland and meadows close to the town.

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The funding will be used to encourage more families, walkers and cyclists to visit Rivacre Valley for picnics or just to enjoy the tranquillity and wildlife that can be seen in the area.

Improvements will include replacement and new benches and picnic benches, improved signage, a new corn meadow to attract butterflies and pollinating insects, new bird feeders and feeder stations and groundworks to protect or improve bio diversity.

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The Friends says they want residents and visitors to discover and enjoy the beauty of the reserve, described as Ellesmere Port’s ‘Jewel in the Crown’.

They would like to thank all residents and visitors who shop at Tesco who took the time to vote for the local project.