FORMER farmland near Glazebury is set to be the latest green expanse to benefit from a new community woodland project.

Rangers from the Forestry Commission are formulating the final blueprints for Windy Bank Farm, off Warrington Road, which will straddle both the Mersey and Red Rose Forest areas.

For many the former agricultural land already boasts a number of signifcant factors which make it attractive to walkers and nature lovers.

Financial support for the fledgling forest has come as part of a £9million grant from the Government's Capital Modernisation Fund and a £2.8million handout from the North West Development Agency.

Tim Oliver, project manager, said: "We're looking to create more wetland areas to help preserve the mosses, put in footpaths and manage the woodland and open spaces, so that local people and wildlife can benefit from the site."

Villagers were given the chance to tour the sprawling 47-hectare haven last weekend and displays outlining the basic principles of the development have been available for viewing at Bent's Garden Centre.

Windy Bank is not the only woodland about to sprout in the area - more than 28 hectares have been set aside near Byrom Hall, in Lowton, under the same initiative.

The rural north of the town has a well-earned reputation for its open spaces, from Risley Moss and Birchwood Forest Park, to Culcheth Linear Park and Rixton Clay Pits.