VOLUNTEERS are putting in 1,000 hours of work to improve a treasured piece of North Yorkshire countryside.

The Nidd Gorge, between Bilton and Knaresborough, is being given special care and attention by Bilton Conservation Group and Knox Valley Residents' Association.

They are co-ordinating efforts after being awarded a £22,350 local heritage initiative grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund and Nationwide Building Society, administered by the Countryside Agency.

The ranks of volunteers have been boosted by members of the newly-established Army Foundation College in Harrogate, and more recently by service personnel from the US listening base at Menwith Hill.

The conservation and residents' groups have joined forces with the Ramblers' Association and Knaresborough Civic Society to research and interpret the area, improve access, and revive lost views downstream near Conyngham Hall.

Co-ordinator Keith Wilkinson said: "We are aiming to protect more than 500 species of flowering plants, including a fine range of native trees."

The Gorge, which runs to the River Nidd, is home to more than 170 species of ferns, mosses and liverworts, 150 kinds of fungi, 120 species of birds, 16 mammals, including roe deer, badgers, long-eared bats and water shrews. There are also 15 miles of footpaths and bridleways.

In addition, the gorge has 250 acres of fields and woodland with public access, once part of the ancient Forest of Knaresborough.

Latest projects include:

* A series of interpretive plaques

* Redesigning and reissuing six guides

* Re-aligning footpaths swept away in floods

* Laying boardwalks and completing small bridge works

* Clearing trees and debris from an Iron Age Hillfort site

* New signage, seating and footpath restoration at Mackintosh Park.