KEPPLEWRAY Adventure Centre has won a grant of £21,780 from the Foundation for Sport and the Arts.

The grant will be boosted to £33,000 because of recent charity tax laws, enabling the centre to buy outright a 14-seater fully accessible mini-bus.

Kepplewray provides adventure holidays and field studies for people with learning and physical disabilities, as well as non-disabled people, and requires a specially adapted minibus for activities.

"We are delighted with this grant, over the moon," said project development officer Rick Townson.

"This opens up operations for us and gives us so much more freedom.

We can get groups to outside activities, to the shores of Coniston for instance.

We can use local facilities more, even for something as simple as going to the pub in the evening."

Previously Kepplewray has hired a similar bus from The Agility Club of Kendal, which could have become a drain on finance, said Mr Townson.

"The Agility Club was brilliant and the cost reasonable, but it was not desirable long term.

This grant has taken a huge weight from us."

Kepplewray has just come to the end of its second fully operational season.

Both years were a success, and bookings were going well for 2001, added Mr Townson.