A START has been made on long-awaited improvements for a footpath linking Braithwaite with Fell Lane, Keighley.

Residents joined local agencies to clear the area around the ‘cat steps’ running down into the North Beck valley from North Dean Road.

They dug out the steps to make it easier for contractors due to repair and replace steps and install new drainage.

They also planted saplings alongside the cat steps and around the nearby North Dean Road play area.

Families who attended the four-hour session took part in activities such as making bird feeders and dens, roasting marshmallows and making hot chocolate over a fire pit.

Community worker Pip Gibson, one of the organisers of the project, said: “People volunteered from both sides of the steps, including Braithwaite and Grafton Road.

“We still need more support to reach the bottom of the cat steps so I will probably arrange another day.”