DIGGERS have moved in to start work on a wildlife haven for a tiny County Durham village.

The Bishop Middleham wetland garden is beginning to take shape after years of planning by villagers.

Residents decided to make the most of the former allotment site, which is one of several areas of the village blighted by flooding.

It has now been declared a local nature reserve and is set to become a valuable resource for residents and visitors.

The garden is to include two ponds, one lined with clay to make it permanent, and the other unlined to allow the water level to rise and fall naturally.

This will increase the diversity of species attracted to the site.

A variety of planting is also planned, and the garden will include a circular walk, suitable for wheelchairs.

Heavy machinery, provided free of charge by Thompson's of Prudhoe, moved on to the site yesterday to carry out the heavy lifting tasks that volunteers could not complete on their own.

Doreen Goldsmith, one of the people behind the project, said: "The visitors (Thompson's) have been stripping turf and have removed the pipes used by allotment holders, which we could not get out.

"They have smashed them up and they are being used as a base for an island in the pool.

"They have also lifted some of the trees that we felled and placed them ready for us to carve seats out of the trunks."

She added: "It's a bit of a mess at the moment, but you can't make an omelette without cracking eggs and it is taking shape.

"We could not have done this without the help we've had from Thompson's. They've done everything we've asked of them."

The next stage in the development of the wetland is to create a boardwalk.

A farmer has offered to plough the soil, which is currently too rich to support a wildflower meadow.