THURROCK's Museum and the preservation of local history will benefit from a grant from a community action fund.

The money is being made available through the Land of the Fanns Landscape Partnership Scheme which has awarded £26,100 to six projects across the wider region. From wildlife ponds to archaeology, geology to information boards, the projects all contribute to the Land of the Fanns' aims to reconnect local people to the local landscape.

The partnership is now entering its final 18 months of delivery. During the last four years, it has awarded £75,000 to projects across the Land of the Fanns area, helping local groups and organisations both big and small, to protect, restore and preserve important community assets, opening up new opportunities for local people to discover the heritage and environmental treasures on their doorsteps and improving the environment for wildlife.

In its final round of funding the partnership, which engages with the communities of Havering, Barking & Dagenham, Thurrock, Brentwood and south-west Essex aiming to maximize the natural, geological, archaeological and built heritage of the local area, says Thurrock Museum can apply for up to £5, 000 which will allow it to restore and conserve its archaeological collections.

The other groups awarded funding are Weald Country Park Volunteer Group, Conservators of Shenfield Common, Essex Gardens Trust, Essex Rock and Mineral Society and Friends of Bedford Park.