WORK on a £3m plan to transform Cannon Hall park and gardens is expected to begin later this month.

The Parks for People project, made possible by financial support from the Heritage Lottery Fund and the Big Lottery Fund, will see key features of the 70 acre parkland, such as the ice house, deer shelter and gardener’s cottage, restored to their former Georgian glory.

Restoration of these important historic buildings, some of which have never been seen by the public, with the aim of placing the visitor attraction firmly on the tourist map.

Work begins in the coming weeks with the distilling of the lakes which once completed will allow visitors to hire rowing boats and fishing equipment, emulating popular Georgian pastimes.

To allow the lakes to be dredged, footpaths into Cannon Hall Park from Cawthorne village, Cawthorne Cricket Ground and Bark House Lane, from south of the lake, will be shut for five months from February 19.

Access to the park via the usual way from Bark House Lane is open as usual.

Further details of the project can be found at www.cannon-hall.com.