THE blueprint for a £100,000 scheme designed to breathe new life into the riverside area next to a York museum has been handed in to planners.

York Museums Trust is hoping to give Raindale Mill, which stands beside the River Foss and has recently seen its water wheel restored, a more prominent role on the city’s tourist trail and carry out a landscaping project aimed at making the area more attractive.

The Castle Museum Riverside Project would also involve making the castle wall “more visible” and increasing awareness of its role in York’s history, as well as promoting the Foss itself, and the Trust has now submitted a planning application to City of York Council.

In a design and access statement, the agents for the scheme, the Green Design Partnership, said it would reverse years of neglect, improve disabled access and lead to an “urban landscape” being created to provide a home for species such as otters and tansy beetles.

“The principal use of the site will be as a high-quality resource for visitors to enhance their museum experience,” said the firm.

“It will act as an outdoor educational area informing people about the history of York Castle, Raindale Mill, the River Foss and York’s natural environment. It will also provide an attractive outdoor space, with seating areas, allowing visitors to sit and relax during their tour of the museum.”

The partnership said the application followed a public consultation exercise, which included seeking the views of museum staff and visitors and staging an open day attended by more than 400 people, which had shown the area was seen as “underused” and not worth visiting in its current state.

“It will create an ecological landscape which will act as a valuable stepping-stone in creating a green corridor through the centre of York,” said the planning statement, adding the revamp would also give museum staff, many of whom work in spaces without windows or natural light, a space to take breaks.

New paths, steps and lighting would all be installed if the scheme is approved, with a decision expected to be made next month.