Grant for community orchard

A community orchard being cultivated by the residents of a Wiltshire town has been given a boost thanks to a cash grant.

People living in Penhill, Swindon, have been working to spruce up a derelict allotment in the area, creating an orchard on the site.

Now they want to plant vegetables too, and have been awarded £6,800 from the British Trust for Conservation Volunteers to help them.

The money will be used to build raised vegetable beds, which will be easier to use and tend than a normal vegetable patch.

Group member Marilyn Beale said: "This money will make it possible for us to continue the project.

"We aim to spend the winter planting some more fruit trees and bushes, and building the raised beds before we plant one or two types of vegetables early next year."