A DRIED-up pond could soon be home to a rare breed of newt.

A Woodland Trust project to re-establish the habitat at Vigo Woods, near Chester-le-Street, has been given £13,000 by the County Durham Environmental Trust, which distributes Landfill Tax Credit money to green causes.

The pond dried up and filled over because of poor drainage and the accumulation of litter, but a study of the area found evidence of the rare and endangered Great Crested Newt living there.

Gary Haley, of the Woodland Trust, said: "By re-establishing the pond we will see a greater host of wildlife including the Great Crested Newt, which is significant as they are an endangered species.

"We also hope that by improving access and walkways, locals and people from further afield will be encouraged to visit the area."

It is hoped that this area will be cleared by December next year. The whole project will not be complete until December 2006.

The trust has also given £22,000 to the Hamsterley Trail Blazers project, which aims to establish a cycling centre in the forest.