OTTERS living by the River Foss are to be safer following a grant of almost £10,000.

GreenPrints, a partnership of five of the country’s leading not-for-profit organisations, which provides funding and support to help young people improve the green spaces in the community, has given £9,991 to the Vale of York Environment Group.

The group is now going to install a 180-metre long fence along a stretch of Haxby Road, to ensure otters don’t stray on to the road and end up under the wheels of a car.

Paul Appleton, of the British Trust for Conservation Volunteers which has offices in Leake Street, York, and helped the group with the grant application, said it was great news for local wildlife.

He said: “This is great news for the otter project in York and the Foss. Without this GreenPrints grant the work to benefit the otters would not go ahead.

“It’s also great that volunteers are getting involved in work on the ground, and it’s of great credit to the young people who pulled the grant together.”

Otters are known to use the Foss, but they have also been killed by vehicles using Haxby Road. Two dead otters have been found – one was a female who is thought to have had pups nearby.

The fence will comprise wooden stakes with mesh and gates for access along it. It will be built mostly by 16 to 25-year-old volunteers, in collaboration with the BTCV, during November and December.

Volunteers who participate in the project will have a chance to work as a team and learn how to build a fence using hand tools. This will allow young people to enhance their communication and problem solving skills through practical conservation.

The project aims to help protect and bring stability to the otter population of York, while empowering young people to make an effective and real contribution to their local environment.

Anyone who would like more information about improving the natural environment in the York area should phone the BTCV on 01904 644300.