MORE than 30 East Lancashire nurseries, pre-schools and child care centres are to benefit from a £1.95million boost.

The cash will be spent across Burnley, Hyndburn, Pendle, Rossendale and the Ribble Valley on improving outdoor play areas.

Lancashire County Council has released details of establishments which will benefit from the Department of Children, Schools and Families funding.

Nearly all facilities will be receiving £20,000 to improve outdoor play areas, either by installing new equipment, providing covered areas or building toy stores.

Ribble Valley is one of the major winners in East Lancashire, with a number of places earmarked for investment, including centres in Whalley, Read, Salesbury, Longridge and Clitheroe.

Other beneficaries include the Buffer Bear nursery, at Burnley General Hospital, one of nine such schemes across the borough.

In Pendle six play area bids, at Nelson St Philip’s school, Brierfield and Fence pre-schools, Little People of Colne, Offsprings and Innisfree Child Care were successful.

Hyndburn will see improvements at Child’s Play and Rishton pre-schools, Heathland and Rodenhurst nurseries and St Wulstan’s playgroup.

Edenfield pre-school, Puddleducks nursery at Haslingden and Whitworth playgroup in Rossendale will also benefit.

Richard Jones, executive director for children and young people, says in a council report: “This represents the maximum amount of grant that would be made available to each setting.

“(Nurseries) will be asked to develop appropriate schemes and submit proposals with detailed costs and written quotations to the local authority.

“Each proposal will need to demonstrate value for money within the allocation before work can commence.”

He says that any unspent money, from each project, must be returned to the county authority, so it can be reallocated in future spending rounds.