VISITORS to the site of an ancient settlement can find out much more about its past.

Information plaques, set into tree stumps, have been unveiled on the site of Catcote Village, at Summerhill, a 100-acre country park in Hartlepool.

They give an insight into life as it would have been in the village, which was discovered in 1963 while school playing fields were being built.

The site featured a series of settlements spanning 600 years through the Iron Age and the Romano-British period.

Archaeologists have carried out regular digs at the site, and their work has provided much of the information for the plaques.

Staff at Summerhill joined members of the Tramshed Workshop, a therapeutic project for people suffering from mental health problems, to install the plaques.

Summerhill manager Tony Davison said: "I would like to congratulate the members of the Tramshed Workshop who worked on this project. The plaques look great, and the information on them makes a very good read."

Tramshed instructor Kevin Hunton-Young said: "This sort of project helps people to regain confidence in their own abilities, and they also get a lot of satisfaction from a job well done."

The plaques were funded through an £80,000 Heritage Lottery Fund grant awarded to Summerhill.