£2.75m grant for charming forest

Charnwood Forest – a surprising outpost of upland England in lowland Leicestershire – has been given £2.75million by the Heritage Lottery Fund.

The money will be used to raise the profile of the forest, with a project helping people explore the area by improving its footpaths, bridleways and cycle routes.

It will also help people engage with Charnwood’s history through arts, activities and events and offer a chance to learn new skills, such as drystone walling and wildlife recording.

The forest’s unique landscape erupted out of a volcano 600 million years ago in the oceans and in the Fifties was the site for one of the world’s earliest fossil finds. The area is now steeped in rich layers of heritage – its landscape defined by granitetopped hills, wooded valleys, heathlands and grasslands.