A SHEEP washing pool that has been restored over the last ten months in Little Cheverell will be officially opened on Saturday at 11am.

The pool dates back to the 19th century and was used by farmers to clean the fleeces of sheep before they went off to market. It is thought that the famous Wiltshire Horn breed of sheep may have used the washing pool followed by the Hampshire Down breed.

The restoration work was done following the award of a grant of £20,000 from the Local Heritage Initiative supported by the Countryside Agency and Nationwide Building Society.

Villagers restored the pool, which is behind the village hall, together with representatives of British Trust for Conservation Volunteers.

There was nothing left of the sluice gates and so they were rebuilt. There is a path, which is accessible to wheelchair users and a viewing area. Although the pool is not to be used to wash sheep the sluice works. George Hockley, one of those involved in the project, said: "People are very interested in the project and I've even had a call from someone in Yorkshire who read about it on the internet."

On Saturday and Sunday there will be displays of old photographs of the village and the screening of a DVD of the project. The exhibition runs from 11am to 5pm on Saturday and from 10am to 4pm on Sunday.