A GRANT application for about £700,000 will be submitted to the Heritage Lottery Fund this month to help to finance the £1.3million second phase of developments at a Suffolk Punch stud farm.

A GRANT application for about £700,000 will be submitted to the Heritage Lottery Fund this month to help to finance the £1.3million second phase of developments at a Suffolk Punch stud farm.

The Suffolk Punch Trust is aiming to build a visitor centre, refurbish stable blocks and build a new access road, car and coach park at the stud at Hollesley.

John Marsh, project manager, said it was hoped the East of England Development Agency would also give a grant.

However, the next phase cannot start until a green travel plan is approved and Mr Marsh is awaiting a decision from the district council.

“It is extremely important and we cannot do anything until it is approved. The road network to Hollesley is not that good and they want us to keep traffic to a minimum,” he said.

The trust forecasts 20,000 visitors in the first year, increasing to 30,000 annually, and it wants to encourage people to combine a visit to the stud with the nearby National Trust visitor centre at Sutton Hoo.

The trust bought the Hollesley Bay Colony Stud, 188 acres of land, buildings and equipment, 27 Suffolk horses and the oldest registered flock of Suffolk sheep in the world for £540,000 in March last year.

It has since spent a further £100,000 on site improvements. The third phase will be to build rural craft workshops and a display arena. The fourth phase is bird habitat features and a 10-acre English garden.