Floods minister Rory Stewart has launched a new £3.5m fund to help repair and improve Cumbria’s public rights of way damaged by Storm Desmond in December.
As well as bringing benefits to residents, the Cumbria Countryside Access Fund is also intended to help to attract tourists back to Cumbria.
Individual grants from a minimum of £100,000 are available for landowners or public bodies and will cover reinstating and improving rights of way for rural towns and villages, visitor attractions, long-distance trails and those passing through environmentally sensitive areas such as Sites of Special Scientific Interest.