Local residents are being offered the chance to get active and do their bit for the environment by learning the country craft of hedge-laying.

Free training courses are being held in the grounds of Wheatfield Primary School on Friday 27th and Saturday 28th January (advance booking is essential).

The courses, organised by local resident John Morris, Environmental Projects and Partnerships Officer at South Gloucestershire Council, are suitable for beginners and those with some experience.

Wheatfield Headteacher Chris Dursley said:

“I’m really grateful to John Morris for organising the hedge laying workshops. This is a great opportunity for members of the local community to learn a new skill, as well as support Wheatfield’s wildlife and school grounds development projects.”

“Like many properties in the town Wheatfield School is lucky to benefit from its boundaries being made up of old hedgerows that provide shelter and food for wildlife. It’s amazing to see just how much wildlife these habitats support. Hedgehogs, robins, blackbirds, blue tits, bullfinches and sparrowhawks make good use of these green corridors and are often seen in the school grounds.”

“As you walk the pathways around the town you often see hedgerow after hedgerow that are in need of management – they have become too tall and gappy at the bottom. They are turning into a row of trees rather than a nice thick bushy hedge, that provide a much better habitat for wildlife to live in.”

Ms Dursley continued:

“Our hedges in the school grounds are just the same, so that’s why we have organised two days worth of hedge-laying training. Thanks to our year long project Wheatfield’s Wild about Nature, funded by the Big Lottery Fund, we’re offering two days training to local residents on how to traditionally manage a hedgerow. Training and tools are being provided to help participants learn the country craft of hedge-laying. No experience is needed just a willingness to get stuck in!”

The courses are being held from 10:30am to 2:30pm on Friday 27th and Saturday 28th January 2012. You can attend one or both days. Anyone interested in booking a free place should call the school on 01454 868610.

Photo: Jubilee Pond in the grounds of Wheatfield Primary School, Bradley Stoke.

Three carved wooden benches are set to be installed at locations in Bradley Stoke thanks to a environment grant worth £1,800 from South Gloucestershire Council.

Local chainsaw sculptor Andy O’Neill is currently working  in an area on Jubilee Green to carve the three benches from a recently felled sweet chestnut tree.

Andy hopes to complete the benches by Thursday 17th June, after which they will be installed at the following locations:

• Howard Davis memorial bench (swans and frog life cycle carving): by Davis Pond, Jubilee Green
• Bees and honeycomb bench – in the flower rich meadow, along the community forest path near Savages Wood
• Apple core bench – near the community orchard in the Three Brooks Local Nature Reserve

The first bench is named in memory of ornithologist Howard Davis, who lived at the now-demolished Little Stoke Farm, and was instrumental in the founding of what is now the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust based at Slimbridge.

Cllr Brian Allinson, SGC’s executive member for planning, transport and strategic environment, said:

“The council is committed to enhancing the district’s natural environment and these fascinating pieces of public furniture, created thanks to a grant from the council, are sure to become talking points in Bradley Stoke.”

See more photos of the Bradley Stoke wood carvings on PicasaWeb.

The pond at Jubilee Green, Savages Wood Road has been cleared of rubbish by a team of volunteers from the local community. As The Journal reported last week, the pond had become polluted with shopping trolleys, bicycles, tyres, plastic seats and other debris, making it dangerous for people and wildlife.

The community action, inspired by two members (Mikey and Keith) of the local youth club, was coordinated by Ruth Cornish of Southern Brooks Community Partnership with help from Bradley Stoke Neighbourhood Policing Team and Home Housing Group.

Members of the youth club worked together with families from the neighbourhood adjoining Jubilee Green to collect debris from the pond and load it into a skip. Local Police Community Support Officer Pat Gardener was on hand to help direct the group, which consisted of about thirty people of all ages.

The pond was cleared in just under an hour, leaving the skip overflowing with mattresses, bicycles, an exhaust system, tyres, plastic furniture, computer equipment, a motorcycle, a vacuum cleaner and several shopping trolleys.

The hard work was followed by a well earned rest with the participants enjoying a barbecue back at the Jubilee Centre.

Lots more photos of the community pond clearance can be viewed in our PicasaWeb Gallery [album, slideshow].

As stated in our previous report, littering and fly tipping can be reported to South Gloucestershire Council’s Streetcare team (Tel: 01454-868000). If you are dissatisfied with the response you get from Streetcare team, you are advised to contact your local town or district Councillor [see The Journal’s Contact your Councillors page for how to do this].

Each home in South Gloucestershire is allowed one free collection of bulky waste (items that are too big to fit in your bin) in any 12 month period, while the Sort It! Centre in Station Road, Little Stoke accepts most types of household waste.

Abandoned Tesco trolleys should be reported to the customer service desk (Tel: 01454-847300) at the supermarket group’s Savages Wood Road store. The company told The Journal that it has a policy of collecting dumped trolleys when it is made aware of them. No comment could be obtained from the Aldi store at Patchway Brook roundabout, whose trolleys require a one pound deposit.

Southern Brooks Community Partnership is calling on residents of Bradley Stoke to help clear out the pond at Jubilee Green, Savages Wood Road. Rubbish has been dumped in and around the pond, making it dangerous for people and wildlife.

Interested parties are asked to meet at the Jubilee Centre [map] from 6pm on Thursday 22^nd May. Gloves and bags will be provided, but helpers are asked to bring their own waterproof footwear (wellies or waders).

The clear-up is the idea of members of the youth club that meets at The Jubilee Centre. Youth club members and leaders will be joined by a member of the Bradley Stoke Neighbourhood Policing Team as they they deal with the shopping trolleys, bicycles, tyres, plastic seats and other debris that litters the pond.

More photos of the pond before the tidy-up: [album; slideshow]

The initiative comes a few weeks before the town’s annual Community Festival that features events on the Jubilee Green over the weekend of 6^th-8^th June.

Residents are reminded that incidents of littering and fly tipping can be reported to South Gloucestershire Council’s Streetcare team (Tel: 01454-868000). If you are dissatisfied with the response you get from Streetcare team, you are advised to contact your local town or district Councillor [see The Journal's Contact your Councillors page for how to do this].

Fortunately, other ponds within Bradley Stoke are in a healthier condition. A few weeks ago, The Journal’s photographer took these shots [album; slideshow] of the pond at Patchway Common. Elsewhere, the Three Brooks Nature Conservation Group has created two new ponds in the grassland to the north of Savages Wood.

2008-04-06 Bradley Stoke Wildflowers and Conservation Work

Seeking a break from recording progress in the construction of Bradley Stoke’s new town centre, The Journal’s photographer recently ventured into nearby Savages Wood and woodland below Bradley Stoke Community School to capture some more peaceful scenes. Check out the pictures of bluebells and wood anemones on our PicasaWeb pages [album, slideshow].

Volunteers from the town’s Three Brooks Nature Conservation Group were also busy over the weekend, planting wildflower species in the community orchard. The group’s next workday takes place on Saturday 3rd May, when some stream cleaning is planned.