A GRADE II-listed park is set to be transformed after a £861,000 grant awarded to Burnley Council.

The Heritage Lottery Fund has provided the funding as part of a £1.19million plan to revitalise Thompson Park in the town.

MORE TOP STORIES:

The money will go towards making the pavilion café for use as a multi-purpose community room with kitchen, disabled toilets and park ranger office.

It will be used by visiting schools and volunteers.

The boathouse will be converted into a café with tables and seating to create an area to sit overlooking the lake.

The paddling pool will be resurfaced, repainted and have new pipework installed to help with empting and filling.

Michelle Wolfenden, the chairman of the Friends of Thompson and Queen’s Parks, said: “The friends group has been working with the council to improve Thompson Park for nearly 20 years.

“The award of this grant is a dream come true for all of us.

“We are very excited to see it take shape and become something wonderful.”

The park was designed by the borough engineer Arthur Race and the first designs appeared in 1928, which led to its opening in July 1930.

There will also be major works to the play area with a sand and water pit being installed as well as new play equipment to replace the worn out ones.

Improvement will be made to the open gardens with repairs to bridges, paths, as well as the gardens, bridges, paths and all noticeboards and signs will be replaced.

Cllr Mark Townsend, council leader, said the work was much needed.

He said: “We are absolutely delighted that the Heritage Lottery Fund has given us this grant.

“We can now look forward to restoring this much loved and very popular park which will be enjoyed by the people of Burnley and our visitors for generations to come.

“It is a well-loved park and thousands of people visit it every year, there’s a bright future ahead for the park.”

Work on the restoration will start in the early Autumn and will be complete by Easter 2018.

Ros Kerslake, the Heritage Lottery Fund’s chief executive, said: “Public parks play a vital role in our health and well-being.

“With this investment from National Lottery players, there’s real opportunity for a rejuvenated Thompson Park to deliver huge benefits to the community.”