THE first set of Blue Badge tour guides in Cumbria for ten years have begun training.

A group of 20 are working hard to bolster their knowledge of the county - from history through to famous faces and geology.

It is ten years since the last Blue Badge guides, who are trained and accredited by the Institute of Tourist Guiding, qualified in the county.

Course director Tess Pike said: "I’m delighted to be getting out and about round the county with the students - by coach and on foot.

"Our first face-to-face training weekend focused on the Romantic Poets and Beatrix Potter but, by exam time, we’ll have explored Cumbria from the southern peninsulas to the Solway Firth and the Eden Valley to the west Coast - all in time for the 2022 season.”

Marie Batty, from Wordsworth Grasmere, said: "We are always keen to host Blue Badge guides who help our visitors to slow down and allow their imagination to roam.

"Wordsworth Grasmere is a place to take time out and the Blue Badge training encourages an authentic experience of the great poet’s story."

Gordon Lightburn, a course trainee and a former farmer, said: "The course is opening my eyes to the full breadth, depth and diversity of Cumbria’s heritage and the contribution this region has made to the history and culture of Great Britain.

"I’m really looking forward to sharing this story with visitors and locals alike."

The training process lasts for a year and there are exams in April.