Bikes, fencing, guttering and the inevitable shopping trolleys were hauled out of the ponds in Ashtead Park in an energetic working party lasting two weekends and several weekdays as well.

Along with the hardware the Leatherhead and District Angling Society with workers from EDF and Blu3 with the help of machinery provided by Ashtead Plant Hire removed load after load of silt and rotting leaves to clear the pond to create an attractive habitat for the wildlife and the fish.

"What we are doing is clearing the water, creating a greater depth and letting more light into the ponds," said Matthew Jefferys, vice chairman of the Society.

The society is nearing the end of a comprehensive programme to restore the ponds and their surrounds in Ashtead Park to their former glory.

The next stage is to install fishing platforms and restock the ponds if necessary.

It has been given a £50,000 grant to improve the ponds, make them more accessible and to create a dipping pond which will become an educational facility for local school children to introduce them to the pleasures of wildlife watching.

Over the last couple of years members of the society have put in hours of hard work making major improvements to the park, removing trees that overhang the pond, cutting away foliage that drooped over the water and improving pathways which were frequently impassable in wet weather.

The tree removal proved controversial with some other park users but they were only cut down with advice from Surrey Wildlife Trust which manages the park and tree experts who inspected the specimens chosen for removal.

"Some of the work still looks quite new, a bit raw but it will settle down in time," said Mr Jefferys.

By the time the whole project is finished it will have taken four years to complete and will enable people living near to enjoy the park, notorious for its wet and slippery paths, no matter what the weather.

The Environment Agency has electro-fished the ponds to establish whether some pike needed to be removed. They are aggressive fish and can create havoc in a pond if there are too many of them. They have even been known to attack ducklings but experts decided that the numbers were suitable for the size of the ponds.

The ponds are closed to fishing at the moment but shortly selected members of the Society will be allowed to fish for a brief period to check the types of fish that are flourishing in the ponds.

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