New Leegomery nature trail opens with free community event
A new nature trail and wildlife area in Leegomery will be open to the public for the first time on April 3 with a nature-themed open day including storytelling from a local author.
Between 11am and 1.30pm, there will be a jam-packed day of nature-themed activities based around learning about wildlife and conservation and aims to bring the community together in the newly created public trail.
The project is the result of a council-funded initiative called ‘Safer & Stronger Communities’ where neighbourhood coordinator Gillian Denning has worked with residents and partners to find a solution for an overgrown area of woodland, next to the community centre.
Councillor Paul Watling (Lab), cabinet member for safer & stronger communities said: “This event shows how a community can come together to create a sense of place.
“The woodland before was dark and overgrown and no-one could access it, now people can wander along the paths and explore the area where bats and woodpeckers live. A place where people can join together and enjoy picnics and outdoor play.
“Removing the overgrown trees and undergrowth has opened the area up making it feel safer too. This project has transformed the area and created a special community facility that will be used for people of all ages for years to come.”
Gillian has worked with partners to secure funding from Wrekin Housing Trust, local councillors as well as Telford and Wrekin Council to pay for forestry management by local charity Smallwoods to create walkways and a new bench.
Visitors are invited to bring a reusable drinks bottle for free refills, clean yoghurt pots to make bird feeders and a picnic to enjoy while they take part in activities such as seed planting, face painting, installing bat boxes and even storytelling by new Leegomery author Jessica Keane.
Miss Keane, previously a vet, will be performing an adaptation of her new book about a black kitten called ‘Mia is Lost’ for pupils from Milestone Nursery and others attending. The story aims to help black kittens as in her experience, these are often last to be adopted.
Other visitors include West Mercia Police who will be helping people with SmartWater marking for bikes, Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service will be showcasing a new fire truck and Sarah Mai who has been working with bottle tops for more than a decade, will be demonstrating her plastic pixel art to build mosaic-style pictures too.
The Safer & Stronger Communities project is led by Telford & Wrekin Council with support from the Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC), John Campion. More that £2m will be invested into issues concerning safety and ways to build community groups with an additional £500K from the PCC, over the next two years.
Police and Crime Commissioner John Campion said: “Green spaces are so important for our health and wellbeing. I’m delighted to have been involved in this exciting joint project with Telford & Wrekin Council.
“As PCC, I want our public spaces to be places where you are not only safe but you also feel safe. The transformation which has taken place in Leegomery, has seen the removal of overgrown trees and undergrowth to improve visibility when visitors are walking along the new trail.
“The trail’s launch event will be an amazing occasion bringing local communities even closer together. If are you going along, please speak to your local policing team at the West Mercia Police stall who will be giving out free SmartWater kits.”
Pictured left to right: Neighbourhood coordinator Gillian Denning with Councillor Gemma Offland for Hadley and Leegomery, one of the bird boxes installed that was made by pupils from Leegomery Primary School and donated by Smallwoods. A natural fence built to guide people along the new walkways.
