A historic pond in a South Gloucestershire village has been restored thanks to the work of volunteers.

Weir Pond in Marshfield has long been associated with the history of the village and had accumulated a hundred years’ worth of silt.

The pond has now been dredged and cleared of silt as well as being re-lined with puddling clay – a traditional method used to line ponds since ancient times.

Work was carried out following a £300 Wessex Water Watermark Award.

Rachel Hollyer, clerk of Marshfield Parish Council, said: “Weir Pond historically was used to wash carts. It is not recorded when it was established but it was so well used that in 1895 there was a complaint, made to the newly constituted Parish Council, about the congestion caused by so many carts queuing in the road.

“It was used for this purpose at least until the war years of 1939-45. After that it was no longer used for cart cleaning and it was colonised by wildlife instead.

“The village’s team of willing volunteers have restored the pond to its former glory so that it can continue to be both a haven for wildlife and an attractive historic village feature.

“Our local council helped with a community grant which we used to dig out the pond and we are delighted to have had this support from Wessex Water which has gone towards buying the clay to line the pond.”

Chris Chambers, finance and commercial director for Wessex Water, will present the Watermark Award to Marshfield Parish Council at a council meeting tomorrow (Tuesday).

He said: “Marshfield’s village pond is steeped in village history. Now that it is restored it will continue to play an important part in village life, and Wessex Water is delighted to have helped with its restoration.”

The Watermark Award provides funds for environmental projects within the Wessex Water area. Now in its 26th year, it has supported nearly one thousand environmental initiatives.

To celebrate this milestone Wessex Water has launched a new Watermark Award. Now communities can apply for a special Anniversary Watermark to help with installing water bottle refill points that will reduce single use plastic drinking bottles.