RARE NEWTS have been given a helping hand in Denby Dale.

Volunteers working with the Denby Dale Countryside Project, in collaboration with the 10 Villages Conservation Group, have been repairing dry stone walls along the Kirklees Light Railway for nature conservation.

And the local newt population will benefit.

Dry stone walls might be the last place you would look for newts, but members of the Denby Dale Countryside Project have proved otherwise – the walls provide newts with places to hide and safe routes between ponds.

They also provide a place for hibernation during the winter.

With funding from waste company SITA and Kirklees Council Environment Unit, a Great Crested Newt Link Project is being developed to connect two colonies of great crested newts.

Special ponds are being created in areas alongside the railway track to provide new habitats for the newts.

The walling project is being led by Nigel Goody, from The Otley and Yorkshire Dales Branch of the Dry Stone Walling Association.

Andy Wickham, Kirklees countryside officer for the project, said: “We have worked closely with like-minded individuals and conservation organisations to help protect newts for a number of years now.

“With the enthusiasm of local volunteers and hands-on support from organisations such as the Otley and Yorkshire Dales branch, some outstanding dry stone walling and habitat improvements have been achieved.”