The Rising Sun Country Park has been awarded a prestigious Green Flag for the fifth year in a row.

A 400-acre green oasis, the park includes an organic farm, nature reserve, countryside centre, numerous ponds, woodlands and extensive grassland areas.

And since 1 April this year, it has featured the House of Objects - an innovative creative recycling centre.

The park, which has its entrance off Whitley Road, Benton is run by North Tyneside Council in partnership with the Rising Sun Farm Trust.

Green Flag Awards recognise and reward the best parks in the country. The scheme is run by Keep Britain Tidy, GreenSpace and BTCV.

Cllr Glynis Barrie, cabinet member for Community Services, said: "This award is richly deserved.

"The Rising Sun Country Park is a fantastic asset for the borough and now has even more to offer, following the opening of the House of Objects."

Margaret Hall, chair of the Rising Sun Farm Trust, said: "I'm delighted that once again the special partnership between the Rising Sun Country Park and the Rising Sun Organic Farm has been recognised by a Green Flag. The park and farm is a place for everyone to use and enjoy."

The House of Objects makes available waste and remnant materials, offering the opportunity to reinvent their use and meaning.

The centre was inspired buy the 'Remida Centre', which was established in Reggio Emilia, northern Italy, in December 1996.

Like the Remida Centre, the House of Objects aims to present an ecological, ethical, aesthetic and economic challenge to the region.