A NEW lottery-funded programme is aiming to inspire and connect young people with nature.

The North Pennines AONB Partnership has received a £249,970 grant from The National Lottery Heritage Fund for the new project.

The Expanding Horizons project will work with schools in selected areas that face particular challenges to get their students out and about in the landscapes of the North Pennines AONB and UNESCO Global Geopark.

There will be opportunities to connect with schools in other UNESCO Global Geoparks.

It will also involve a new programme of activities for pre-school children and their families and carers.

The project is aiming to make key locations more accessible to a wider range of people through developing high-quality online information to help people visit with confidence, particularly young people with autism and their families.

Naomi Foster, Geology Projects Officer, said: “We are excited to be building on our work with children and young people and we believe it’s important to be focusing on wellbeing at this time and the benefits that a connection to nature can bring.

“We’re also very much looking forward to working with organisations such as the North East Autism Society and Children North East, and of course the young people themselves to help us develop and get the most from this project.”

School visits start after the Spring half-term and the pre-school group begins at the North Pennines AONB Partnership’s Bowlees Visitor Centre in April.

The North Pennines was designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) in 1988.

At almost 2,000 sq. kilometres, the North Pennines is the second largest of the 46 AONBs in England, Wales and North Ireland.

The North Pennines is also a UNESCO Global Geopark. This puts the area’s Geopark status in the same UNESCO family as World Heritage Sites and Biosphere Reserves. UNESCO Global Geoparks are places with outstanding geology where special effort is made to make the most of geological heritage to support community and economy.

For more information about events and activities, visit https://www.northpennines.org.uk