PLANS to restore a historic Hampshire waterway, once used to transport much of the county's produce to the sea, have moved a step closer.

The Itchen Navigation Heritage Trail Project has been handed a grant of £48,000 by National Lottery chiefs in a bid to secure the ancient waterway's future.

The money, along with other funds from the Environment Agency, will be used to carry out a thorough investigation of the issues affecting the river and finding the best course of action to save it from further decay.

The Itchen Navigation, which flows through Winchester and Eastleigh on its way to Southampton Water and the ocean, was last open to commercial vessels in 1869.

It is said to have been navigable from Alresford through to Southampton since the 12th century.

In 1665 a government Act was passed to make the Itchen, along with numerous other rivers across the country, navigable. Artificial locks and cuts had been added to facilitate this by 1710.

However, with the advent of steam-powered trains, the old river and canal systems gradually fell into disuse and eventually decayed.

Now, though, bosses at the Itchen Navigation Heritage Trail Project, along with colleagues at Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust, are planning on reversing that decay.

Initially the cash will be spent on establishing which of the problems facing the navigation, including the need to renovate public pathways, rebuild bridges, and secure the riverbanks, need the most urgent attention.

Further applications for grants to carry out major repairs to the ageing system will then be submitted before the bulk of the work can be carried out.

A spokesman for Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust said: "The Itchen Navigation is an important place for wildlife and is a candidate Special Area of Conservation and a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

"It is also a place that is enjoyed by thousands of local people each year, with the ten-mile long towpath between Winchester and Southampton providing rare public access to the Itchen, which is situated in a valley of outstanding historic value."

For more information on the work of the trust, visit www.hwt.org