AN ANCIENT dew pond has been restored thanks to hours of hard work by volunteers, grant aid and the skills of a specialist conservation contractor.

The pond, on a secluded hillside at Vicarage Farm, Scawton, close to Rievaulx Abbey, dates back at least 150 years said Ann Strang, whose father, Marcus Tomlinson, owns the farm.

The restoration work has seen hundreds of tons of clay laid and polished in the base of the pond, together with layers of lime and charcoal topped with rubble, to create what conservationists believe will soon become a haven for wildlife.

Natural England, the Government’s environmental agency, gave a grant towards the total cost of £9,000, while North York Moors National Park volunteers helped clear debris from the long-disused pond.

Because of the difficult steep access to the pond, contractor Clive Wood, a specialist in countryside conservation schemes, could not use the usual equipment to clear the pond of silt and vegetation and the work had to be done by hand.

Mrs Strang said wheat straw has been used to restore the pond to its original state and added that the project complements the farm’s Higher Environmental Stewardship initiative. A wild flower meadow has been created on the 10 acres of land in the initiative, together with extensive native tree planting and a hay meadow.

Some 20 tons of specially-excavated clay has been used in the restoration work. Mrs Strang said: “Restoring the pond seemed to be a natural extension of the work we have already done. I am a keen conservationist and environmentalist and I am sure that when the pond is filled and established it will become an educational resource for young people to study wildlife, especially birds, water life, flaura and fauna.”