Search for 'community champions'

Leaders from black and ethnic minority groups are meeting in the Peak District to discuss how their communities can get more involved with National Parks.

The Mosaic Partnership is recruiting volunteers from inner city communities to encourage groups to enjoy the countryside and care for its future.

The first volunteers met at Losehill Hall in Castleton for a three-day conference on Saturday.

Project manager Stuart McLeod said they wanted more "community champions".

He said people from black and ethnic minority groups were under-represented at National Parks, whether as employees, volunteers, visitors or decision makers.

The aim of the conference is to galvanise interest and support to help communities become more effectively involved, he added.