THOUSANDS of young fish have been released into North East rivers to give stocks a boost and encourage people to go fishing.

This week more than 1,600 barbel were released into the River Tees at Broken Scar, Darlington, and more than 2,300 roach into the River Skerne at South Park, also in Darlington.

The team also put almost 2,000 bream and 1,300 rudd into Lockwood Beck, which is just south of Guisborough.

The work is part of the Environment Agency’s ongoing plan to develop and restore rivers and fisheries in the region, to encourage people to get outdoors and enjoy angling.

Paul Frear, fisheries officers for the Environment Agency, said: “We target our work to rivers which may have suffered from previous pollution incidents or where there are barriers for fish passage."