Chesham and Amersham MP Cheryl Gillan was on hand to inspect to progress of a nature park in Little Chalfont last weekend.

Mrs Gillan visited the site - off Cokes Lane, next to Doctor Challoners High School – on Saturday after an invite from the community.

The land, near the centre of the town, was bought by local residents in 2011 for £180,000 and is now owned by the Little Chalfont Charitable Trust (LCCT).

Mrs Gillan said: “This will be a fantastic amenity for the village and I am delighted to see a community coming together to save such a special part of our valuable Chiltern countryside.

“I am so pleased that the needs of all those with limited mobility and other disabilities have also been incorporated into the plans.”

The LCCT have submitted a grant application to build an access road along with a circular foot path.

A final decision on the grant is expected in February 2016 and – if successful – the park could open to the public in the spring.

Roger Funk, trustee of LCCT, said: “It is very much a community project.

“We bought the land because we felt that Chalfont badly needed a tranquil space in the centre of the village.”