Bosses behind the 112-hectare reserve at Brockholes Quarry, close to junction 31 of the M6 in Samlesbury, near Preston, scooped the cash after the Lancashire Environmental Fund decided it was a "flagship" environmental project.

The cash will be used to provide pathways around the reserve and develop a badger hide and several bird hides.

Project manager Ian Selby said: "We are delighted to have won the challenge. Nature conservation at Brockholes is paramount.

"We hope it is going to be spectacular. The setting itself is already quite important for migrating birds, wintering birds and breeding birds and, because it is so close to Preston city centre and close to the motorway, it is very accessible.

"If we can improve the site and make it more accessible for people at the same time, it is going to be a regionally important resource."

Andy Rowett, fund manager for the Lancashire Environmental Fund, said the nature reserve will be "a flagship for the county and the region".

Plans have recently been submitted to Lancashire County Council by Lancashire Wildlife Trust for part of the nature reserve work.

It is hoped the site will eventually include a visitor centre, a 250 space car park, a recreation base to store boats and other equipment and a "living machine" waste water treatment system based in a 50 square metre greenhouse.

The facility is expected to attract 250,000 visitors a year, sparking traffic fears around the M6 and A59.

The majority of the cash for the project is expected to come from grants and charitable causes.

The Lancashire Environmental Fund was launched in 1998 and has allocated over £15m to over 500 community, environmental and waste management projects throughout Lancashire.