An art centre's wildlife garden will be developed further thanks to a grant from a nuclear company.

Florence Arts Centre received money from NuGen, the firm behind the proposed Moorside development, in 2015 to turn an area of waste ground into a garden.

Now, the company has handed over a grant of up to £5,000 to allow the centre to improve the area.

Florence board member Pippa de Gara said: "As phase one went so well we decided to submit a second bid for phase two development of the wildlife garden, and we are delighted to have recently been told the bid was successful.

"This involves working in partnership with the 'Stay West' group, young adults with learning disabilities, who are based at Lakes College, but spend a lot of time carrying out voluntary work at Florence Arts Centre.

"We intend wherever possible to use existing structures and keep the area as natural as possible, enhancing what is already in place and hopefully encouraging involvement from schools, local groups and the community in general."

The plans include a new cleft oak fence along the boundary, willow arches to form a pathway along the side of the building, raised beds for growing vegetables and a table for outside art work.

Since the last grant work has been carried out, with help from Stay West students and Thornhill School pupils, to build bug hotels, bird hides and a pond in the garden.

NuGen has identified 14 community projects which will receive Green Grants worth more than £35,000. These grants are designed to improve the local environment and promote sustainability.

The grant winners were picked by an panel made up of NuGen CEO Tom Samson, Copeland mayor Mike Starkie, Ann Lackie, from Cumbria Wildlife Trust, and Elspeth Lees, from the University of Cumbria.

Mr Samson said: "The selection process is getting harder because the calibre of applications has really gone up a notch, I think Green Grants has allowed the projects to get creative and aim high - the sky really is the limit for some of these ideas."