A WORLD heritage site has received a major funding boost from the National Lottery to promote its rich history.

The Rediscovering the Antonine Wall project will use the additional £980k from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) to raise awareness of the 63-km site, which ran from West Dunbartonshire to Falkirk.

There are plans to place replica distance markers based on the Roman originals at five sites along the wall with information about its history.

And there will be Roman-themed playparks, designed in association with local schoolkids, created at other sites near to the wall so youngsters can play while finding out about the wall.

A programme of 30 community-designed projects will take place across the five areas the wall passes through - Glasgow, East Dunbartonshire, North Lanarkshire and Falkirk, as well as West Dunbartonshire.

Resources for schools exploring topics such as Roman cooking and crafts will be developed as well as talks, tours and a community-led remake of the 1950s Walk the Wall film.

And a 21st Century legion of 300 volunteers will be recruited and trained to help co-design projects in their communities, act as tour guides, help with research and raise awareness.

Emma McMullen, Antonine Wall HLF project manager, said: “We are delighted to have been awarded this funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund to support our £2.1m Rediscovering the Antonine Wall project over the next three years.

“The funding will give us the opportunity to work with communities along the length of the wall to better engage them with their Roman heritage, along with creating facilities that will help to promote the Antonine Wall to visitors.

“It will also allow us to work with colleagues at Hadrian’s Wall and the German Limes to share ideas.”

Councillor Jim Finn, convener of planning and licensing, said: “We are fortunate to have this part of history on our doorstep and are grateful to the HLF for recognising its value.”

And MSP Gil Paterson added: “We have a huge amount of truly remarkable ancient heritage of national significance in this area but unfortunately much of it is unseen because it is buried underground, the Cochno Stone is a perfect example, so it is great that action is being taken to engage with local people and visitors so they can fully appreciate and understand the influence the Romans had on life in Scotland.”

“The innovative proposals for this scheme will help to bring our rich history alive for local people and tourists alike and has the potential to attract many more visitors to the area. Tourism makes a huge contribution to the local and national economy so any investment in our heritage is to be applauded.”