People will soon find it easier to visit a Coventry beauty spot after work to improve access is carried out as part of a millennium project.

Canley Ford is undergoing subtle changes to make the area more pleasant for people to enjoy.

It has been included in a Millennium Green scheme running across the country to ensure green spaces are secured in public ownership.

The wild meadows and stream off Kenilworth Road in Earlsdon have been placed in a trust with a 999-year lease.

Work on the centrepiece of the £140,000 project, a small waterfall, has been completed.

Seats that were sculptured by local artists and members of the community have been installed and work to remove old telephone poles is to start shortly.

The changes are being overseen by the Friends of Canley Ford – a voluntary group set up by people keen to preserve the area.

They carried out consultation at schools and libraries in the area to find out what people wanted to see.

Adrian Dyke, chairman of the Friends of Canley Ford, said people did not want major changes, but general improvements to enhance the area.

The idea for the waterfall came from a resident who remembered a fall that stood on the site of Canley Fire Station in Fletchampstead Highway. It was cleared in 1936 to make way for the new A45.

Mr Dyke said:

“In the past it has been quite difficult to get access to the meadows because the paths get very muddy. They are now being improved and it will give disabled people the chance to visit.

“It will also help get agricultural implements down there for maintenance.”