HMS Scylla arrived back in Plymouth, where she was built

The Leander-class frigate HMS Scylla arrived in Plymouth at the weekend from Portsmouth after months of negotiation.

The plan is to sink the 2,500-tonne vessel off Whitsand Bay in Cornwall for divers to explore, in addition to it being colonised by sea life.

But first the vessel must be stripped and cleaned of any materials or parts which could harm sea life.

HMS Scylla A Leander Class Frigate with a general and anti-submarine role Built in the late 1960s Weighs 2,500-tonnes 113 metres in length The ship was recommended for disposal in 1991 It was decommissioned in December 1993 Similar vessels have been placed on the seabed in Canada, Australia and New Zealand

The Scylla was the last ship of her kind to be built at Devonport Dockyard in Plymouth in the late 1960s.

The vessel was taken out of active service in 1993 and has been used as a training facility in Portsmouth Harbour since then.

She was bought by Plymouth's National Marine Aquarium (NMA) last month for about �200,000 with funding from the South West Regional Development Agency (RDA).

Kelvin Boot, from the aquarium, said they are keen to ensure that it is not just divers who will see the vessel change as it adjusts to its new environment.

He said: "We want our visitors if they are not divers to share in this spectacle as well.

"So what we'll be doing is fitting some hi-tech cameras and beaming that back to us in the aquarium and hopefully getting that out to our website."

When the Scylla is placed on the seabed off Whitsand Bay, she will become Europe's first artificial reef for divers.

She is due to be sunk in April 2004, after which it is expected she will help generate �1m a year for the local economy.