One of the biggest environmental restoration projects in Britain has been given a boost.

Cumbria Wildlife Trust received a £476,000 grant in a ceremony at the House of Lords.

The money, presented by Lord Clarke of Hampstead, is to help finance the work at Foulshaw Moss Nature Reserve near Witherslack in the South Lakes.

The cash was awarded by environmental grant-making charity GrantScape.

The trust bought Foulshaw Moss in 1999 and the first restoration phase was completed last year with the removal of 190 hectares of conifers.

Over the next three years the numerous drains that cross the peat bog will be blocked. Raising the water levels will restart peat-formation, help the growth of peatbog plants and encourage insects.

The installation of 700 metres of footways, 1,000 metres of marked trail, improved car parking and new viewing platforms and interpretation will make it accessible to visitors.

Foulshaw Moss is a large lowland raised mire, or peatbog. In the UK, 94% of these fragile habitats have suffered from agricultural reclamation, forestry, peat extraction and development.

Raised peatbogs are now one of England's most scarce habitats. Foulshaw Moss was planted with conifers in the 1950s.