OFFENDERS carrying out unpaid work will help council staff boost a popular public garden in Walton.

Workers will give the town’s Church Gardens a facelift, replacing outdated paving with a new surface and laying down new turf.

The garden will be closed to the public for about four weeks while the work is carried out.

Nick Turner, Tendring Council environment cabinet member said: “It will involve removing a large amount of rather tired and out of date crazy paving around the gardens and increasing the amount of land that will be grassed.

“I would ask people to bear with us while this work is undertaken.

“We apologise that it is necessary for the gardens to be closed for a short while but there will be an overall improvement to the site in the long term.”

Essex Probation’s Community Payback scheme provides about 1,000 workers every week to help with community projects across the county.