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Senior councillors have welcomed a “significant and much-needed investment” in Caerphilly’s public spaces – promising more street cleaning, weeding and overgrowth clearing.

The county borough council has approved a new programme of “cleaning and greening enhancements” backed by £1.3 million of funding from a UK Government policy.

Cllr Chris Morgan, the cabinet member for green spaces, said “unavoidable” financial pressures in recent years have had a “clear impact on the look and feel of our neighbourhoods”.

The new programme, covering the current financial year, offers “an opportunity to reinvest in the local environment”.

Works include a “dedicated weed removal service” and the reintroduction of cleaning teams, as well as a Community Response Team that will provide “low cost but visually high impact” improvements to public spaces across the county borough.

Cllr Morgan said the programme will be “more than a cosmetic exercise” and will hopefully deliver economic benefits by attracting more visitors.

Council chief executive Richard Edmunds added the funding is “going to be massive” for the local authority.