A MINATURE railway in the heart of a busy park is set to expand thanks to a £1,000 grant.

The Thompson Park Railway will see a third station built and an extension of its track.

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Volunteers who have worked on the Burnley site are aiming for the improvements to be ready by Easter.

The money came from Tesco’s Bags of Help scheme, which sees funds from the 5p plastic bag levy used to fund community projects.

The railway was set up by volunteers in 1990 and the track size has increased in recent years, with the latest addition set to see the round-trip journey stretch more than a kilometre.

Mike Bailey, secretary of the Thompson Park Railway group, said the park will benefit from the extra cash.

He said: “As a group we are over the moon to get this money.

“This type of work is very expensive and we could not have afforded it off our own backs.

“We have seen an increase of people using the railway in recent years and in order to cope with demand, we needed to grow.

“The new platform would mean there would be a better flow of people wanting to use the train and we could get them moving around the park at a much better rate.”

The railway was originally set up to transport people from Towneley Hall and the car park.

It almost doubled in size in 2012 after supply in demand forced it to grow.

The bags for life scheme grants can be applied for by groups that benefit the community.

Mr Bailey said: “There’s a real enjoyment with riding the trains. It’s a novelty that brings children and parents back for more.

“Our volunteers have been working hard at weekends and Wednesday evenings to get the new extension up and running by the holiday time, but we are relying on good weather and the volunteers being available.

“Sections of the track are still open for people to ride on, so don’t be put off coming until its finished.”

Lindsey Crompton, head of community at Tesco’s, said the group are a perfect example of what the scheme was set up for.

She said: “Bags of Help has been a fantastic success.

“We’ve been overwhelmed by the response from our customers.

“The great thing about Bags of Help is that people are invited to decide how the money will be spent in their community.

“We can’t wait to see the projects come to life.”