Amber Valley Borough Council will spend £15,000 on the improvements to pathways and the nature reserve at Belper Parks.

At a meeting of the full council on Monday night members voted in favour of releasing the money which will be spent on renewing two new footpaths, one close to The Fleet and one leading from the Coppice.

Trevor Griffin, from the Friends of Belper Parks group, which is involved with the upkeep of the site, said the money was welcome news and would go towards making the Parks a place for people to enjoy.

He said there were a number of things the group would like to do to improve the Parks and was currently in talks with the University of Derby to create an education trail through the site, adding that quite a lot of money would have to be spent on clearing the area and making the ground suitable for planting.

"The programme being discussed includes making damp areas to encourage amphibians," he said.

"We are currently making a wildflower meadow and we are going to expand it so it becomes an attractive area of flowers."

He added: "It's not the sort of place people have to go out of their way to use. We want to encourage people to use it and enjoy it."

In March, £15,000 was spent on improvements to safety at the play area at the top of the site when more than £70,000 was released by the developers of the new Herbert Strutt School as part of an agreement with the council to spruce up recreational facilities.

The move for improvements came after an unsuccessful application for a coveted green flag award last year.

It is hoped a second application for the environmental award will have more success this year.