SOME of the UK’s most treasured landscapes are set to receive millions of pounds in conservation money.

The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) has earmarked £18.3m to help provide “long-term social, economic and environmental benefits” for 11 areas.

The sites include ancient woodland, reedbeds, marshes, dunes and former industrial land.

Morecambe Bay in north west England and the Wandle Valley – a green corridor running through south London – are among the areas to benefit.

Alongside conservation work, there will be a wide range of training opportunities on offer such as apprenticeships for disadvantaged youngsters, courses on hedgelaying, drystone walling and traditional dance and music sessions.

Dame Jenny Abramsky, HLF chair, said: “Landscapes speak to the heart, inspiring people in all sorts of ways: be it poetry-writing, architectural design or even just the pleasure of looking at a beautiful view.

“Sadly, they can often be taken for granted which is why the Heritage Lottery Fund, as one of the UK’s biggest funders of the natural heritage, believes the way forward is to put local communities in the driving seat so they can take care of the places that are the backdrop to their daily lives.

“Our Landscape Partnership programme has been a truly ground-breaking initiative, making a significant contribution to the way many organisations work together on landscape-scale conservation.”

So far, the 11 areas have been through the first round of bidding - and they have been guaranteed ’development’ money to help with the second round of bidding.

The areas involved are:

Morecambe Bay – the UK’s largest inter-tidal area, straddling Lancashire and Cumbria, with four estuaries joining in a horseshoe-shaped bay, £100,000 development funding, £2m possible full grant.

The Island of Lindisfarne – a spectacular coastline in north Northumberland known as ’The Cradle of Christianity’, £98,000 development funding, £1.98m possible full grant.

The Glens of Antrim – nine spectacular glens on the Antrim Cost running down into the North Channel; £91,700 development funding, £1.5m possible full grant.

Gower – an unspoilt, much-visited peninsula to the west of Swansea and one of the first ever designated Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB); £19,800 development funding, £1.3m possible full grant.

The Wandle Valley – a green corridor in a dense urban area with the River Wandle flowing from Croydon through to Wandsworth and the River Thames; £78,000 development funding, £1.9m possible full grant.

The Lomond Hills – a distinctive natural landmark of two volcanic sills with some of Scotland’s oldest examples of small-scale mining and limestone quarrying; £90,600 development funding, £1.8m possible full grant.

The River Tay – a rift valley below Perth and the only place in Scotland where the rare bearded tit breeds; £100,000 development funding, £1.5m possible full grant.

The South Dorset Ridgeway – a picturesque stretch of land between Dorchester and Weymouth dating from the Neolithic and Bronze Ages; £96,100 development funding, £1.9m possible full grant.

Stiperstones and Corndon Hill – two upland ridges which bear witness to the Shropshire Hill’s long history of mining and quarrying; £93,800 development funding, £1.4m possible full grant.

The Suffolk Heritage Coast – a narrow coastal strip stretching from Felixstowe to Kessingland with low-lying shingle beaches and estuaries; £86,500 development funding, £896,500 possible full grant.

The Lower Derwent Valley – located along the River Derwent between Matlock and Derby, this part of Derbyshire allegedly inspired the nursery rhyme ’Rock-a-bye Baby’; £87,100 development funding, £1.85m possible full grant.

Environment Minister Richard Benyon said: “These sites are among the best of British views.

“This funding will allow people to come together and learn valuable skills which will benefit the environment around them, protecting wildlife and maintaining our cultural heritage for years to come.”