4
party of volunteers with a roaring re to burn it. As a thank you for their fantasƟc help we will be holding a volunteer task day with Dot and Keith at the Nature Reserve on 3rd March 2015. On this task we will be cuƫng and clearing old Reed Fen vegetaƟon to maintain this important habitat, stop it drying out and reverƟng to nowherenearasrare Willow woodland. If you’re interested, please book on the task as usual. ACTION for WILDLIFE! at The Anne Carpmael Charitable Trust conserves wildlife in the local area and inspires others to do so by running events, courses, a Wildlife Club for children, publishing a monthly newsleƩer and also hosƟng a Forest School. The organisaƟon has no paid staour fabulous volunteers are crucial! The Trust owns two nature reserves Withymead NR (largely wetland) and LiƩle Meadow reserve (wild ower meadow and naƟve tree thicket). Withymead has rare Reed Fen habitat, important for specialist species dependent on it OƩers, Water Rails, Desmoulins Snail, Reed and Sedge warblers plus notably also the largest remaining populaƟon of rare, naƟve, Loddon Lilies in the UK. Come and see thousands of Loddon Lilies in ower at our Sunday Open days in April and May cream teas available on the new riverside landing stage! DOT (Warden at WNR) Spring task INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Welcome and on task - Withymead Nature Re- serve 1 National Trails — Changes Afoot 2 Task Diary & Booking 3 Information Boards 4 Volunteer Feedback 4 The Anne Carpmael Charitable trust 1 NATIONAL TRAILS OFFICE Volunteer Update MARCH TO MAY 2015 ISSUE 11 DM White burning vegetaƟon Photo credit ACCT Email: [email protected] Araba and Trevor loading vegetaƟon This month we have been working in partnership with Dot and Keith, wardens at Withymead Nature Reserve. One of our big problems on the Trails can be disposing of the vegetaƟon that we’ve cut down. This parƟcular secƟon near Goring was very tricky. Working in partnership with Dot and Keith, Withymead Nature Reserve (WNR) wardens, and volunteers we could overcome this. NT volunteers spent the Wednesday clearing vegetaƟon, transporƟng the brash down to the WNR site where on the Saturday Withymead had a work Hello and welcome to the March to May 2015 Volunteer Task Diary! Before AŌer

Volunteer Update - National Trail...ISSUE 11 Task Diary PAGE 3 The task locations are shown as numbers on the map so that you are able to see which locations suit you. Please ensure

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Page 1: Volunteer Update - National Trail...ISSUE 11 Task Diary PAGE 3 The task locations are shown as numbers on the map so that you are able to see which locations suit you. Please ensure

party of volunteers with a roaring fire to burn it.  As a thank you for their fantas‐c help we will be holding 

a  volunteer  task  day with Dot  and  Keith  at  the  Nature  Reserve  on  3rd March  2015.  On  this  task we  will  be  cu ng  and clearing old Reed Fen veg‐eta on  to  maintain  this important  habitat,  stop  it drying out and rever ng to nowhere‐near‐as‐rare  Willow woodland.   

If you’re interested, please book on the task as usual. 

ACTION  for WILDLIFE! at The Anne Carpmael  Charitable  Trust  con‐

serves  wildlife  in  the  local area and  inspires others  to do  so  by  running  events, courses, a Wildlife Club  for children,  publishing  a monthly  newsle er  and also  hos ng  a  Forest School.  The  organisa on has  no  paid  staff  ‐  our  fabulous  volunteers  are crucial! The Trust owns two nature  reserves  ‐ Withymead  NR  (largely wetland)  and  Li le  Mead‐ow  reserve  (wild  flower meadow  and  na ve  tree thicket).   

Withymead  has  rare  Reed Fen  habitat,  important  for specialist  species  depend‐ent  on  it  ‐  O ers,  Water Rails,  Desmoulins  Snail, Reed  and  Sedge  warblers plus  notably  also  the  larg‐est remaining popula on of rare,  na ve,  Loddon  Lilies in the UK.  

Come and see thousands of Loddon  Lilies  in  flower  at our  Sunday  Open  days  in April and May ‐ cream teas available on  the new  river‐side landing stage!  

‐ DOT (Warden at WNR) 

Spring task

I N S I D E

T H I S I S S U E :

Welcome

and on task -

Withymead

Nature Re-

serve

1

National

Trails —

Changes

Afoot

2

Task Diary &

Booking 3

Information

Boards 4

Volunteer

Feedback 4

The Anne

Carpmael

Charitable

trust

1

N A T I O N A L T R A I L S

O F F I C E Volunteer Update M A R C H T O M A Y 2 0 1 5 I S S U E 1 1

DM White burning vegeta on           Photo credit ACCT 

Email: [email protected] 

Araba and Trevor  loading vegeta on 

This  month  we  have been  working  in  part‐nership  with  Dot  and Keith,  wardens  at Withymead  Nature  Reserve.  One of our big problems on the Trails can be  disposing  of  the  vege‐ta on  that  we’ve  cut down.  This par cular sec‐on near Goring was very 

tricky.    Working  in  part‐nership  with  Dot  and Keith, Withymead  Nature Reserve  (WNR)  wardens, and volunteers  ‐ we could overcome  this.   NT volun‐teers  spent  the  Wednes‐day  clearing  vegeta on, transpor ng  the  brash down  to  the  WNR  site  ‐ where  on  the  Saturday Withymead  had  a  work 

Hello and welcome to the March to May 2015 Volunteer Task Diary!  

Before 

A er 

Page 2: Volunteer Update - National Trail...ISSUE 11 Task Diary PAGE 3 The task locations are shown as numbers on the map so that you are able to see which locations suit you. Please ensure

P A G E 2

‘We are now at

the point of

implementing

the changes to

our structure,

and to the

managing and

delivery of the

trails that the

Review has

indicated.’

Implementing Changes

V O L U N T E E R U P D A T E

Hello, 

Some of you may have been aware that during the past few years Na onal Trails (all 15 of them) have been undergoing a review process by Natural Eng‐land. Following on from the con‐sulta on reports based on Natural England’s New Deal for Na onal Trails, our trails are now subject to a set of revised quality stand‐ards which are underpinned by the following:  

Experience – to enable as many people as possible to enjoy the trail. Enhancement –make constant improvements to the trail and its associated routes. Contribute to the enhancement of the land‐scape, nature and historic fea‐tures within the trail corridor. Engagement –  build and sustain a community of interest in caring for the trail and the landscape through which it passes. Economy – to create opportuni‐es for local businesses to benefit 

from the trail.  

We are now at the point of imple‐men ng the changes to our struc‐ture,  and  to  the  managing  and delivery of  the  trails  that  the Re‐view  has  indicated.  In  order  to achieve our new objec ves whilst s ll maintaining our trails to their high  standards,  the exis ng man‐agement  group  are  forming  two separate  Trail  Partnerships  ‐  one for The Thames Path including the London  sec on  and  one  for  The Ridgeway. These partnerships will consist  not  only  of  the  Highway 

Authori es  and  the  Environment  Agency, but will  include other  interest‐ed  organisa ons  such  as  the  two AONBs  which  The  Ridgeway  passes through  –  The  North  Wessex  Downs and The Chiltern Conserva on Board.    

As  part  of  this  process,  there  will  be changes  to  the way we  run  the volun‐teer scheme and these will shortly take effect. Within  the Chiltern area of The Ridgeway, we will  be working  in  part‐nership with  The  Chiltern  Society  vol‐unteers,  sharing volunteer  reports and pooling resources.    

We have also considered the trail mon‐itoring process and whilst some Na on‐al  Trails  monitor  sec ons  twice  per year, The Thames Path and The Ridge‐way Trails have had monitors repor ng on  their  sec ons once a month.   A er considera on,  we  have  decided  that sec ons  and  reaches  should  be moni‐tored every  three months, as opposed to monthly. The issues volunteers need to  report  back  on  remain  the  same: vegeta on growth – up‐growth on  the trail  and  encroaching  side  vegeta on;  damage  to  furniture  –  bridges,  gates and  signs;  erosion  along  the  river banks;  surface  problems  along  the trails and an ‐social behaviour  such as fly‐ pping  that  crops  up  from  me  to me.  

  

Once  again  a  huge  thank  you  for  all your  me  and  effort  in  helping  us  to maintain  our  trails.  Should  you  have any  ques ons  about  the  changes  I’ve men oned then please do get in touch.   

Steven Tabbitt Ac ng Na onal Trails Manager 

National Trails

Office Signal Court

Old Station Way

Eynsham

Oxford OX29 4TL

Tel: 01865 810211 [email protected]

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Task Diary P A G E 3 I S S U E 1 1

The task locations are shown as numbers on the map so that you are able to see which locations suit you. Please ensure that you book early as the practical tasks are becoming very popular. Occasionally we may have to change a task location or date as issues of a higher priority may occur or if the weather conditions are not suitable. If this happens, we will try to keep you as up-to-date as we can.

Task Bookings

MARCH

2nd Shillingford WC (1) 3rd Withymead NR WC (2) 9th Culham WC (3) 24th Pavis wood BC (4) 25th TBC 30th Wantage SW (5) 31st Wantage SW (5)

APRIL

1st Wantage S (5) 8th Shiplake S (6) 9th Blowingstone GR (7) 14th Rushy Lock S (8) 15th Kings lock G (9) 16th Workshop (10) 21st TBC 22nd Shiplake G (6) 28th Chimney M (8) 29th Lechlade BC (11) 30th Grafton M (12)

MAY

6th Marlow BC (13) 7th Oxford (Fiddlers) BC (14) 12th Oxford (Osney) M (14) 13th Newbridge BC (15) 14th Kelmscot M (12) 19th Monkton Downs M (16) 20th Workshop (10) 26th Ashbury M (7) 27th TBC M 28th Kingston Lisle M (7)

11 

12 10 8 

14 

1 5 

16 

13 

15 

Check

the map

for a

task

location

near to

you.

WS = Workshop G = Gate Installation S = Signage SW = Surface Works WC = Winter Clearance TBC = To be confirmed M = Mow BC = Brushcutting GR = Grip clearance

To book onto a task: Please contact the office by emailing: [email protected]

Installing New Signage at  Streatley  with Steve and Diane  

Page 4: Volunteer Update - National Trail...ISSUE 11 Task Diary PAGE 3 The task locations are shown as numbers on the map so that you are able to see which locations suit you. Please ensure

Working out on the Trails

 

short  me  and  give  some‐thing back to the community.  Thank  you  for  your  hospitali‐ty,  the  coffee  and  chocolate hob knobs too! — Sara  

Just  a  quick  few  lines  to  let you  know  how much  I  really enjoyed  our  ci zenship  day yesterday  spent  helping  you out  on  The  Ridgeway.  Our team  is s ll rela vely new, so not  only  was  it  a  rewarding experience  to  put  something back  into the community, but it  also  helped  us  begin  to bond much  more  as  a  team too  ‐  meaning  that  the  day was  an  overall  success  on  2 

Thanks  from  us….  We’ve  had regular corporate groups out on the  Trails  over  the  winter  and recently a Na onwide corporate group came out with us on The Ridgeway  near  Ogbourne  St George.  A  big  ‘thank  you’  to them  for  all  their winter  clear‐ance  work,  the  installa on  of one  of  our  new  Informa on Boards and a great day! — Sara  

...and  thanks  from  them:  I  really  enjoyed  our  day  yester‐day, I felt that we really made a difference just in one day. It was a great day for not just our own team building but  to see such a difference  we  could  make  in  a 

levels and something  I’d be more than happy  to do  it all again. — Peter  

Had  a  great  day  all  be  it  a  li le cold.  I  thought  the  tools  and  or‐ganisa on of  the day by  yourself was  great,  was  amazed  at  how much progress we made!! Thanks very much  and  hopefully we  can do  it  again  some me. — Gareth    We all had a great  me. It was really good for the team to work together and we all got a great sense of accomplishment at the end results.— Hazel  

Calling all Monitors  

Ridgeway: Our informa on boards along The Ridgeway need  checking  so  if  you have  one  on  your  sec on please  tell   us what  condi‐on it is in. 

 

Thames  Path:  Along  the trail  please  let  us  know  of any  erosion  issues  you come across.  All:  If you’re running short of envelopes,  report  forms or  bin  bags—please  email us—and  thanks  again  for being  our  eyes  and  ears along the trails. 

 

Thank you to all of our intrepid moni‐tors for informing us of issues along the Thames Path and The Ridgeway trails that need a en on.   

There are 25 informa on boards along The Ridgeway and we are in the pro‐cess of replacing them. We’ve re‐placed 13 already but need to review the rest‐ so we are asking monitors along the Trail if they have an infor‐ma on board on their sec on to check its condi on and let us know what state its in. The Informa on Board at Ivinghoe Beacon has now been rein‐stated…..on an extremely windy day!   ‐ Sara  

On Board

Dick and Sara on site – Ivinghoe Beacon