MORE than £150,000 has been added to the existing money pot to transform a Southampton "green desert" into a spectacular community park.

Nearly £400,000 is now available to pay for a revamp of Mansel Park and Green Park in Millbrook.

Work has already begun, thanks to a £220,000 grant set aside by the Outer Shirley Regeneration Board, and earlier this month schoolchildren helped plant willow trees at the site.

This week, board members announced that £160,000 from private and public sector funds had been added to the grant, bringing it to £380,000.

Once approved by the South East England Development Agency, the cash will pay for a new play area for toddlers and a family garden near Millbrook Towers, Windermere Avenue, a grass maze and a wildlife garden.

New footpaths and a lit cycleway will also be installed, as well as a new open-air events space for plays, concerts and festivals.

The existing play area will be refurbished, the basketball court improved, football pitches reinstated and more seating and litter bins will be installed.

Some land had been pinpointed for housing to raise £1m for bigger park improvements.

However, when the plans were sent out to thousands of Millbrook homes, residents launched a campaign to save their space - and voted to keep the bulldozers out.

Regeneration board chairman Graham Walker said: "Mansel Park often has the appearance of a green desert. Despite its massive size, the green space is underused and suffers from poor facilities and poor drainage.

"I am confident that this regeneration money can transform the area, helping to create a real community facility that can be enjoyed by residents of all ages.

"The improvements that we want to fund have all been suggested by the local community during consultation events and I am delighted that the local people involved with The Friends Of Mansel Park group have played such a key role in developing this project."