NELSON Square is being given a £3,000 Victorian style make-over -- and the new look is expected to be open to the public by November.

High grade Yorkstone flags are being laid on the footpaths and granite setts on the carriageways.

Traffic signs and poles are also being revamped.

The area between the War Memorial and the roof of the underground toilets is being flagged. Plants will be put on the roof of the toilets.

The 14-week scheme, which started in August and is partially funded by the European Regional Development Fund, is expected to be completed by the end of this month.

Bolton councillors are hopeful the new £3,000 Nelson Square will provide a larger and more appropriate venue for memorial day services and other ceremonies.

Cllr Guy Harkin, the council's executive member for environment, said: "The work is all part of the Southern Gateway initiative which is improving this part of the town centre and follows the refurbishment of Newport Street.

"The area formed part of Bolton's first suburb. Once the work is completed, the square will look very attractive."

Similar projects have been carried out in Wood Street and plans are also in the pipeline to enhance the conservation area around Mawdsley Street.

Nelson Square was laid out as a paved enclosure in 1823 after Bolton began to expand with homes off Bradshawgate in the late 1700s.

It was overlooked by three storey town houses and an infirmary and was used as a pig market until the end of the 19th Century.

In 1893, the council replaced the paving with gardens bordered with ornate iron railings with the memorial commemorating the First World War built in 1920.

The wider area including Mawdsley Street was declared a Conservation Area in 1970.