A NEW trust has been set up to protect the chalk stream rivers and nearby countryside of Wessex.

The Wessex Chalk Stream Rivers Trust will put into action a programme of improvement and protection for the whole southern Wessex area. An inaugural launch of the new trust will take place on June 30 at Somerley House, Ringwood.

The trust is the merging of local clubs and associations in Hampshire that have previously protected and enhanced the Wessex area. These organisations are now uniting into a single charitable trust.