The next phase in a multi-decade scheme to restore a river to a more natural course is to begin in August.
A stronghold for otters and salmon, the River Breamish, which becomes the River Till at Wooler in Northumberland, is classified as being in an unfavourable condition, external due to changes made over centuries to support agriculture.
The scheme, led by the charity Tweed Forum, will remove engineering structures which historically straightened the river on a section in the Hedgeley area, north of Rothbury.
Senior Project Officer Craig Marshall said: “We are seeking to allow the river to stretch itself back out across the floodplain as it wants to do, rather than being confined to a single channel.”
He said: “Before humans came along rivers didn’t flow in single channels.
“Its natural path is to flow through several channels across a floodplain.”