VILLAGERS have received a cash windfall to help them set up a memorial to remember their ancestors.

Grane residents, in Haslingden, are transforming a plot of moorland that overlooks Calf Hey and Ogden reservoirs, into a garden where local families can dedicate trees to past and present loved ones.

Lancashire County Council has awarded the group £2,000 for the cost of the trees, benches and planting, which will begin in October.

An extra £250 Community Chest grant from the Action for Haslingden Partnership will enable the group to produce certificates and a book of remembrance for people who want to plant and dedicate a tree.

It is expected to garden will be officially named when all the work is complete.

Jacqui Ramsbottom, a member of Grane Residents' Association, has carried out a lot of research into the project and said: "The Grane is a very special, beautiful place.

"Haslingden families descended from Grane residents still feel a strong link to the area, so much so that we have people from all over the world attending our annual get-together.

"The tree-planting is a way of celebrating the past, and it is also something for the future generations of Haslingden families and the thousands of people who visit the Grane each year to enjoy."