Volunteers put dry stone walling skills to the test repairing wall near Craster Tower on Northumberland coast

Environment organisation Coast Care stepped in to rebuild a 200 yard section of wall near Craster Tower after being approached by Craster Parish Council.

Leading the work is Andy Pigg, from Chatton, a volunteer who undertook specialist training organised by Coast Care.

“It’s quite therapeutic in a way,” he revealed. “It’s a bit like working with Lego, making sure you sort the stones out and reassemble them the right way to make sure the wall is as strong as possible.

“You build from the bottom up, using the bigger stones as a wide base and then fill the gaps with the smaller stones. By the time the capstones go on, everything should be firmly in place.”

“It’s like doing a jigsaw,” added fellow volunteer Gill Sanders, from Haggerston. “The idea is that once you pick up a stone there will be a place for it and you don’t have to put it back. That’s the theory, anyway!”

The small team has been plugging away at the project one day a week since October and hope to be finished by the end of April.

“If you do three metres a day that’s good going,” said Andy. “We’re handling local whinstone for the most part which is pretty heavy.”

Fellow volunteer Ian Bell, from Morpeth, said: “It’s very satisfying work. It’s great to see the wall starting to take shape now.”

A main part of the task has been removing the ivy which destabilised the wall and led to its partial collapse.

“We’re told that if it’s rebuilt properly it will last another 100 years, as long as people don’t tamper with it,” says Andy.

“It’s an example of the good work Coast Care is doing that might not get picked up if it wasn’t around.”

Joining them in their work last week was Robert Drummond, newly appointed Coast Care project assistant (conservation and training).

“I’m loving it,” said Robert, from Berwick. “It’s great to be out and about and when you’re building a dry stone wall it helps keep you warm!”