The Northern Ireland Environment Agency (NIEA) has organised an excavation of trenches dug by soldiers preparing to go to the Western Front in World War 1.

Volunteers and schoolchildren are being urged to take part in the dig at Grey Point Fort, one of the best-preserved Coastal Defence Batteries in the UK and Ireland, on the shores of Belfast Lough.

Welcoming the excavations, Environment Minister Mark H Durkan said: "Grey Point Fort is a unique site, and these excavations are a special way to explore what preparation for the First World War looked like for the soldiers who would eventually find themselves on the battlefields of Europe. So far the dig has revealed defensive features characteristic of First World War trenches, including trench pickets.

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"It is fitting that some 200 local school children and volunteers from the Defence Heritage Project are participating in this exciting and historically significant dig, underlining the importance of community involvement in the care and exploration of this site.

"This is the first time that an archaeological excavation has focused on a First World War site in Northern Ireland. And, coming as it does in the centenary years of remembering the First World War, these excavations will give us all an opportunity to reflect on the events of that time, how that war came to pass, and how it affects our lives even today."

The excavations will run until 24 October 2014.

(CD/JP)