A VACANT piece of land in Upper Gornal that was a magnet for litter has been transformed.

Residents had complained to ward councillors Adam Aston and Keiran Casey that the land, just off Eve Lane, was constantly overgrown and full of litter.

Eager to come up with a solution, the pair worked with the Woodsetton Charitable Trust to put a plan of action together and look for available funding.

They then worked with the group to lobby Dudley Council to secure some cash and the group also applied for funds through the authority's Community Forum.

The hard work paid off as the area has now been surfaced and has railings, a litter bin and dog waste installed to prevent future problems with rubbish.

There is also an interpretation board detailing the history of the green open space, known as Swanbrook Valley.

Cllr Casey said: "This is another fantastic project that we are delighted we have been able to work residents and Woodsetton Charitable Trust on.

"The area has now been transformed and looks fantastic, local residents have already contacted us to say what a huge difference this has made."

Cllr Aston added: "When residents contacted us about this, we acted.

"We are always looking at ways to improve our community, myself and Keiran are both local people, born and bred, so we are extremely proud of our community.

"We are extremely grateful to Woodsetton Charitable Trust for their help on this project and for everything that they do in the local area all year round."

Harry Brookes, chairman of Woodsetton Charitable Trust said the group was "extremely glad" that the project had "turned out well".

He continued: "We are always looking at projects to improve local green spaces and have always received help and support from Adam and Keiran as the local councillors, so when they contacted us about this we were very happy to help."