ANNUAL REPORT 2006/07
STAFFORDSHIRE GREEN AWARDS WINNERS
2006
Major projects by BCV in 2006
Date. 1-1-06
Place.
Task. Hedgelaying
Volunteers. 1
Results A
lovely day, so I started the year coppicing and laying an area by a memorial
bench, as no one fancied doing the annual walk on New Years Day.
Date. 8-1-06
Place. Foremark
Reservoir
Task. Annual
Walk
Volunteers. 13
Results An
excellent walk including Ashby and Calk Abbey approx 10 miles as our annual New
Year walk.
Date. 14-1-06
Place.
Task. Hedgelaying
course
Volunteers. 11
Results An
excellent follow up to the major hedgelaying project started last year. We were able to get organized a bit quicker
as many of the volunteers have already worked on the hedge so things are moving
more quickly. We had some complaints
from the neighbors, despite plenty of warning and offers of consultation, about
the increase in road noise caused by the lowering of the hedge, so we are
leaving standards every 10-15 Metres.
Date. 15-1-06
Place.
Task. Hedgelaying
course
Volunteers. 15
Results Another
good day with around 50 Metres completed over the weekend.
Date. 21-1-06
Place.
Task. Project
meeting with staff and parents
Volunteers. 3
+ an excellent turnout of staff and parents
Results A
very positive meeting to give the vision of the major wildlife/sensory project
planned for the school grounds. Jon Thickett the deputy head covered all the
points in my speech, in his intro. So I had to have a very quick rethink! We still had time to setout the planting
areas for tomorrows project on the way home.
Date. 22-1-06
Place. Milne
Holme Pingle nr. Yoxall
Task. Create
a nature area on a newly acquired piece of Parish Council land
Volunteers. 15
+ 12 local
Results A
really positive day with lots of local support, including 3 under 10 years
local and 2 under 16 BCV. A misty day,
but all the trees planted and benches installed.
Date. 5-2-06
Place. Chasewater
station
Task. Scrub
clearance
Volunteers. 15
+ 7 local
Results An
excellent turnout and lots achieved and site manager Justine Lloyd was amazed
at what had been cleared and burned on the day.
The work is part of the management to restore the SSSI Heathland. A few
problems with m/cyclist, but the sight of a man with a long handled slasher
seemed to deter them.
Date. 12-2-06
Place. Chasewater
station
Task. Scrub
clearance
Volunteers. 16
+ 1
Results A
drizzly day and a shame no local came out apart from John Smith from
Date. 18-2-06
Place.
Task. Reed
cutting as part of the new 7-year rotation for the reed beds
Volunteers. 8
Results A
glorious sunny day and after we worked out how to define the area to be cut,
good progress was made with the scythes.
Just before dark the volunteers were instructed on how to set Longworth
traps for the small mammal walk in the morning.
20 traps were set and mapped around the reserve.
Date. 19-2-06
Place.
Task. Assist
with small mammal walk and finish reed cut.
Volunteers. 11
+ 4 Community Punishment Order (CPO) workers and their supervisor.
Results The
Mammal walk was a great success, with 30 people attending despite the
weather. Despite predictions that we
would only have a 10% take up on 20 traps, we caught 10 woodmice and one bank
vole, so hopefully our work is creating a healthy environment. The reed cut was completed and the CPO
workers shown how to bale and clear the site over the coming weeks.
Date. 5-3-06
Place. Yoxall
Lodge
Task. Clear
paths and improve habitat
Volunteers. 16
Results 210
Metres of path were cleared and opened up as well as viewing points around the
lake, as part of the farmers diversification into ‘Bluebell walks’ open to the
public. Great care was taken to protect
sensitive areas of the site and everyone enjoyed working in such a special
environment, or was it just the excellent home made cakes and free tickets for
the walks, provide by the clients.
Date. 11-3-06
Place. Daniel
Hayes Farm
Task. Attend
a coppice course
Volunteers. 5+1
Results An
excellent course led by an ex BCV member, in a wonderful ancient woodland. The site owner welcomes BCV members free of
charge onto courses as a ‘thank you’ for all the good work carried out there by
BCV. Excellent home made food mainly
sourced from the farm.
Date. 12-3-06
Place. Daniel
Hayes Farm
Task. Continue
coppice course
Volunteers. 9
+ 1
Results Another
good day despite the snow, all helping to restore a neglected Hazel coppice and
improve the skills and knowledge within the group.
Date. 18/19-3-06
Place. Hardcastle
Crags,
Task. Repair
and fill the log store
Volunteers. 8
x 2
Results A
very enjoyable weekend staying in a local hostel and working for the National
Trust. Volunteers were shown how to use
a tractor mounted log splitter and used it to process a huge amount of firewood
for use in the old Mill, now used as a visitors centre.
Date. 25-3-06
Place. Jinnie
Nature Trail
Task. Continue
coppice bay rotation
Volunteers. 3
Results A
very productive day giving continuity to the coppice bay program. The trail was a bit overgrown due to the
uncertainty over its future, but we felt that the coppice cycle should be
continued whatever. The bay was soon cut
back, so we had time to clear 18 Metres of ditch as well.
Date. 26-3-06
Place. Beans
Covert
Task. Experimental
planting
Volunteers. 10
Results A
bit of an opportunistic project inspired by an article stating that there was
no proof that Rhododendrons poison the ground beneath the. Working on recently
cleared Rhodi. sites, we carried out, 4 different plantings inc. a control, so
that any difference in growth rates can be monitored, to see if there is any
significant effect.
Date. 1-4-06
Place. Monks
Walk
Task. Continue
work on the garden restoration project
Volunteers. 7
+ 8 local
Results A
good days work on a developing site, plenty of clearance work and the area for
the last section of path was opened up. The
garden restoration and the timeline garden are ‘looking the business’.
Date. 8-4-06
Place.
Task. Phase
1 of the Wildlife/Sensory Project
Volunteers. 5
+ 3 school
Results A
local scaffold firm had done the high work and we had a free min-digger for the
day, so a good start was made on removing the old structures, to make way for
the new area.
Date. 9-4-06
Place.
Task. Phase
1 of the Wildlife/Sensory Project
Volunteers. 9
+ 3 school
Results Continuing
the good work started yesterday, the old brick fort was completely demolished,
but a lot of material was saved for re-cycling.
Date. 14-4-06
Place.
Task. Phase
1 of the Wildlife/Sensory Project
Volunteers. 4
Results An
extra day to tidy up and use up the turf and spoil from the paths.
Date. 23-4-06
Place.
Task. Man
promotional stall
Volunteers. 8
Results A
good positive day at the Tulip Festival, with plenty of interest shown in the
BCV stall and our Fairtrade stall adjacent.
Date. 29-4
to 1-5-06
Place. Brecon
Beacons
Task. Training
walk
Volunteers. 10
Results An
excellent social weekend camping in the Beacons and good training for the
‘Source to Sea’ sponsored walk coming up.
Date. 6-5-06
Place. Belvedere
school
Task. Dig
over allotment
Volunteers. 4
+ 8 school
Results A
good day with the headmaster Paul Hicks and 6 of the children joining in to get
some overgrown areas back into cultivation.
Date. 20-5-06
Place. Walton
Hall
Task. Helping
to restore the walled gardens
Volunteers. 8
+ 2 local
Results Good
progress with the beds and manuring, walled area cleared.
Date. 21-5-06
Place.
Task. Training
walk
Volunteers. 6
Results A
very wet day so not many walkers, good training for the coming walk.
Date. 27-5
to 4-6-06
Place. The
River Wye
Task. Sponsored
walk/canoe
Volunteers. 11
Results A
fantastic trip, if a bit of a grueller, only 3 fell in, so not a bad average
and over £4k raised for the Saxon Hill Project.
Date. 11-6-06
Place.
Task. General
maintenance work
Volunteers. 12
+ 4 CPO and supervisor
Results A
bits an pieces day, clearing up loads of essential little jobs.
Date. 9-7-06
Place. Monks
Walk
Task. Continue
garden restoration
Volunteers. 7
Results Paths
weeded, topsoil and Hoggins cleared paths cut back.
Date. 1-7-06
Place. Walton
Hall
Task. Continue
restoration work on the garden
Volunteers. 7
+ 1 local
Results A
very hot day, but the walled gardens and the driveway are taking shape and
looking good.
Date. 8-7-06
Place. Jinnie
Nature Trail
Task. Gen.
Maintenance on the Trail
Volunteers. 5
Results A
successful morning on the Jinnie, opening the path up and carrying out a ‘cut
and take’ on one of the coppice bays.
Date. 8-7-06
Place. St
Mary’s Church, Stretton
Task. Man
promotional stalls
Volunteers. 5
Results A
very well attended open day at the church, where we had BCV and Fairtrade
stalls.
Date 15-7-06
Place. Rolleston
Spinney
Task. Scrub
clearance
Volunteers. 4
+ 5 local
Results A
productive day with approx 250 metre² cleared of Elder, Nettle and Bramble,
plus some snowberry to see how easy it is to clear. We hope to work with ESBC to plant a Hazel
coppice in this area later in the year.
Date. 16-7-06
Place.
Task. Repair
bird screen and build bird boxes as part of the open day
Volunteers. 11
Results Working
as part of
Date. 22-7-06
Place.
Task. Build
a pond-dipping boardwalk
Volunteers. 10
Results A
bit of a slow start, as we didn’t have any plans or prior knowledge of the job,
but one we sorted out a plan the teams soon got stuck in. An added complication was not being allowed
to drive stakes through the clay liner, in case it lowered the pond level. Good progress was made and everyone was
pleased with the results
Date. 23-7-06
Place.
Task. Build
a pond-dipping boardwalk
Volunteers. 10
Results Efficient
breaking of camp despite overnight rain.
We did not manage to complete all 4 sections of the boardwalk, but more
than 60% finished and we left some tools and a good work plan for the local
volunteers to complete the task.
Finished in time to treat an elderly lady who had fainted with the heat.
Date. 30-7-06
Place. Jerusalem
Hill nr. Yoxall
Task. Build
a flight of steps
Volunteers. 10
+ 2 local
Results An
excellent start to a big project, to install 27 steps and a handrail to a
viewpoint at the top of the hill used for the Good Friday service, by the local
vicar. The route for the flight of steps
was established and everyone had a go at most aspects of the job, so that we
can get started quicker next time.
Date. 6-8-06
Place. Jerusalem
Hill
Task. Continue
step building
Volunteers. 11
+ 2 local
Results Good
progress including fitting the ‘pinch gate’ at the top. We did a bit of digging to check the
archeology of the site, but without any plans it was more in hope and nothing
showed up.
Date. 12-8-06
Place. Jerusalem
Hill
Task. Complete the flight of steps
Volunteers. 8
+ 1 local
Results The
‘Stairway to Heaven’ was completed and the steps infilled with stone. It was a very impressive structure when
finished.
Date. 13-8-06
Place. Foxley
Wood Linton Heath
Task. Clear
overgrown pond and manage new tree plantation
Volunteers. 11
+ 2 local
Results The
25% section of the pond was cleared of encroaching Typha by 2.30 pm so we did
some path clearance, crown lifting and then had a walk around the site to
discuss woodland management.
Date. 2-9-06
Place. Jinnie
Nature Trail
Task. Clear
and de-silt pond
Volunteers. 11
Results A
good start was made on clearing coppiced areas and setting up a safe work area
for the digger and the dumper. Good
progress made all day.
Date. 3-9-06
Place. Jinnie
Nature Trail
Task. Continue
de-silting the pond
Volunteers. 15
Results Another
good day despite the digger getting well and truly stuck near the end of the
day (I had to pull in a few favours to get it out the following day). The paths well cleared and cut back all along
the Trail through to Rolleston.
Date. 17-9-06
Place. Broad
Meadows
Task. Meadow
management
Volunteers. 9
Results Following
up on the success of last year’s work which resulted in a 4-500% increase in
Snakes Head Fritillaries recorded on the site.
Proper transects marked this year where intensive management had taken
place.
Date. 24-9-06
Place. Gentleshaw
Common
Task. Scrub
control as part of a Heathland awareness event
Volunteers. 6
Results A
good days work and we were lucky to have
Date. 1-10-06
Place.
Task. Manage
nature area
Volunteers. 13
+ 4 local
Results Lots
achieved with choking vegetation removed from the BCV built pond, trees and
shrub beds pruned and thinned. We did
have one complaint about the fire, but it was unfortunate that there was a
strong wind.
Date. 8-10-06
Place. Croxall
Nature Reserve
Task. Clear
trees from the lakeside and gen. maintenance
Volunteers. 11
Results 5
x 10 Metre areas opened up along the lakeside and the brash etc. stacked as
habitat piles. A lot of previously cleared areas had coppice/suckering
regrowth, so this was removed as well as some repairs to the bird hide.
Date. 14-10-06
Place. Yoxmoor
Bank nr Yoxall
Task. Collect
local tree seed
Volunteers. 8
Results A
huge amount of local seed collected and some very nice apples sampled.
Date. 15-10-06
Place. Monks
Walk
Task. Continue
garden renovation
Volunteers. 10
+ 3 local
Results Another
productive day, clearing leaves, cutting back shrubs and general weeding. It is good to see the site and the ‘time
line’ gardens develop.
Date. 29-10-06
Place. Beans
Covert
Task. Woodland
management
Volunteers. 22
Results Lots
achieved on MAD day Rhododendron and Sycamore control, Hazel coppice, woodland
soil collection to start the tree seeds collected at Yoxmoor and soup made from
our own allotment pumpkins plus ‘Tarte au Pomme’ made from local apples.
Date. 5-11-06
Place. Yoxall
Lodge
Task. Build
bridges and clear paths
Volunteers. 17
Results An
excellent turn out possibly due to the promise of more of the client’s cakes
(chocolate, walnut and
Date. 11-11-06
Place. Chasewater
station
Task. Lead
a hedgelaying course
Volunteers. 6
+ 2 local
Results A
good start with a small team as it was not a proper hedge more an area of
scrub, but it was looking a bit like a hedge at the end of the first day.
Date. 12-11-06
Place. Chasewater
Station
Task. Lead
a hedgelaying course
Volunteers. 12
+ 6 local
Results An
excellent day with a real buzz amongst the volunteers. The hedge progressed well and it was decided
to do an extra day as everyone wanted to see it finished.
Date. 18-11-06
Place.
Task. Install
paths
Volunteers. 8
+ 6 teachers and parents
Results A
very successful day despite the cold. We
used a turf-cutter to cut out the paths and then dropped in the grass
reinforcing grids and backfilled with sand, fertilizer and grass seed. The turf was used to cover some of the rubble
piles, to create habitat for the amphibians using the pond. 85 Metres of path were laid ready to give
access for the tree-planting day. Back
in
Date. 19-11-06
Place.
Task. Assist
with a small mammal walk/survey
Volunteers. 10
Results Not
as successful as the
Date. 25-11-06
Place. Richard
Attenborough Centre,
Task. Man
promotional stall at the Botanical Society
of the British Isles Annual Exhibition Meeting
Volunteers. 1
Results A
very positive day as I was worried about how a conservation group would be
received at such a meeting, but it gave us a chance to show that conservation
groups do carry out constructive work and this was well received.
Date. 26-11-06
Place. Chasewater
Station
Task. Complete
the hedgelaying
Volunteers. 15
+ 5 local
Results Another
great day with everyone feeling good about the project. Approx 35 Metres of hedge laid, and staked,
done in a
Date. 3-12-06
Place. Gentleshaw
Common nr.
Task. Scrub
clearance
Volunteers. 10
+ 2 local
Results A
huge site, but we made a good impression on it, clearing scrub from alongside
most of the paths and collecting 2 large bags of litter.
Date. 9-12-06
Place.
Task. Hedgelaying
course
Volunteers. 7
+ 6 new
Results Good
to see new faces keen to learn, work progressing well.
Date. 10-12-06
Place.
Task. Hedgelaying
course
Volunteers. 13
+ 2 new
Results It
always looks better on the second day, good progress made.
Date. 11-12-06
Place. JCB
Rocester
Task. Collect
Green Award
Volunteers. 2
Results A
large specially made Wedgwood plate presented to BCV as Gold Gilt winners in
the Community Section of the Staffordshire Green Awards
As we start our 14th
year following on previous successes
I sometime think that we can’t continue to
increase the work days, but with 519 volunteer work days carried out by group
members, plus 109 by ‘others’ including headmasters, local people attending
courses Community Punishment Order (CPO) Parish Councils, local children and
other local people drawn out by BCV on 58 separate work days, making a grand
total of 628 volunteer work days, we up again on last year, despite the long
walk taking up a number of weekends. The
Community Punishment order lads and their supervisors have worked very well
with the group, going way beyond ‘what they can get away with'. Again this report does not take account of
the work done behind the scenes like site surveys, committee meetings all the
admin, organising tools, and follow up visits.
The group has again successfully carried out
all of the diverse tasks asked of it and this has resulted in a lot of new
skills learned. The slide show talks (not counted in the total) have developed,
showing what the group does and the importance of work carried out.
I have not included social walks, even the
sponsored ones, in the total, although they were used as opportunities to study
and observe the development of previous BCV work, other conservation projects,
and to identify potential new projects.
The huge amount of work on the allotments and orchard has not been
included either.
We have branched out, providing training
opportunities for some clients and created a training fund, to encourage
volunteers to improve their skills. It
has encouraged me to produce more handouts and educational material, relating
to the tasks and this helps to increase the volunteers understanding of the
tasks and the reasons for undertaking them.
This has resulted in making the group (including myself) more effective
and it has made me research more deeply into projects, helping to make the work
more sustainable through a wider understanding of the knock on effects of what
we do.
The group continues to expand and look for new
challenges, having worked in Leicestershire, Derbyshire, Yorkshire and
Shropshire, as well as Staffordshire this year and received the highest award
‘Gold Gilt’ in the ’Sustainable Staffordshire Award’ with a magnificent
specially commissioned Wedgwood plate as first prize.
It is a shame to pick out individuals in such a
tremendous team effort, but I would like to give special thanks to
Sadly our Treasurer Shelly Brady recently died
and we would all like to remember her through the trees we have planted in her
memory and for the hard work she did looking after the BCV accounts, as well as
working with the group on tasks.
In terms of partnership this year we have worked with:
National Bodies;
National Trust, Probation Service (Community
Punishment Order) and
Regional Bodies;
Staffordshire Wildlife Trust, The National Forest Company, Neighborhood Management Initiative, Community Action & Support East Staffs (CASES), Staffordshire County Council, Bridgenorth District Council and East Staffordshire Borough Council, Lichfield District Council, Tamworth District Council.
Local Bodies;
Parish Councils, various schools, CREST
club and
A big thank
you and well done to all involved!