VOLUNTEERS are being sought to give a rundown park a makeover.

Fairy Dell park, near Coulby Newham, Middlesbrough, is hosting an open morning featuring demonstrations of rural crafts, organised by Middlesbrough Council today from 10am to noon.

The aim of the open morning is to discover whether residents support the idea of a friends group that would oversee an improvement programme and help raise funds.

The group was the idea of resident Mike Guess.

He said: "Fairy Dell is, in my opinion, the best natural wildlife space that Middlesbrough has, but it does need a lot of work and maintenance to make it accessible again for families and visitors.

"I would be pleased to see the council doing something to improve the way it looks and contribute to its maintenance. I hope too that residents will get involved and contribute to the well-being of the dell with their ideas and plans."

Council development manager Paul Rabbitts said the wooded beck banks, lakes, walks and wildlife were valued by residents.

He said: "There's quite a bit of work to do to clear footpaths, repair steps, remove overgrown and fallen trees, and the council has applied for grants to get some of this work done and improve access.

"We also want to open up the area for schools and community events and hope that we can get a friends group started to play their part in deciding priorities, applying for funds and generally helping ensure residents are involved."

The dell's waterfall and ponds were polluted in 1999 when an overflow released a large amount of sewage.