The Friends Of Craiglockhart Woods and Nature Trail

Annual General Meeting, Thursday 8th March

bill.troup — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 14:47:45 +0000

The Annual General Meeting of the Friends of Craiglockhart Woods and Nature Trail will take place on Thursday 8 March 2012 at 7.00 for 7.30 at the Craiglockhart Tennis Centre. Refreshments will be available from 7.00pm. The AGM will start at 7.30 and will be followed by a short presentation by a guest speaker – details to follow.

We look forward to seeing you there.

Green Flag Award for the 3rd year running

bill.troup — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 17:34:11 +0000

On Thursday 3 November 2011 the new flag was raised at a small ceremony in the woods. The sun shone on us and everyone looked happy and enjoyed the opportunity to meet and socialise with their neighbours from the community.

This year 34 Green Flags were awarded to green spaces in Scotland with Edinburgh gaining 20.

We did well to retain our Green Flag status for another year. We shall will continue to work to support the LNR and to ensure that it is maintained at a high standard. We would like to thank everyone in the community for their on-going support which is crucial to our success.

What have the Countryside Rangers been up to recently?

bill.troup — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 09:00:33 +0000

September/October

Bat boxes were checked this month by one of our Countryside Rangers (CR) who has a bat licence, there was no evidence of bats using them although bats can be seen around the pond at dusk and just after the sun has set. Some of the bat boxes have been nailed down which makes checking them difficult so we aim to replace these this winter with bat boxes which can be easily checked without disturbing any potential inhabitants.

Education

Susan Dickson, Senior Countryside Ranger had a meeting with some of the friends to discuss educational provision on the hill. There are already good links with some local schools like George Watson’s College who use the site as part of their 2^nd year biology curriculum. The Big World holiday club also use the site for a week in August learning outdoor skills and helping the woodland management with a bit of sycamore thinning. Susan and the new Deputy Head of Craiglockhart Primary School have discussed how to use the woodland as a Forest School site for the Primary School children. The children will visit every week to improve their knowledge and skills on environment and woodland subjects while improving self esteem and confidence building.

Maintenance/Conservation

The Countryside Rangers have been out strimming paths in September and the curling rink has been sprayed and scraped to tidy the area up, the wall around the wickets was also sprayed to remove ivy in preparation for repointing work. The CR’s have been working with the British Trust for Conservation Volunteers removing Japanese knotweed, an invasive plant; cutting back vegetation on the causeway; raking fragmites reeds at the outlet pipe and cutting back the hedge.

Invitation – Green Flag Award Celebration

bill.troup — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 16:12:39 +0000

Easter Craiglockhart Hill Local Nature Reserve was one of the first green spaces in Scotland to gain a Green Flag. In recognition of our continuing high standards we have been awarded a Green Flag again this year for 2011.

You are invited to join us at our Green Flag Award celebration on Thursday 3 November at 4.00pm at the top of Craiglockhart Terrace at the old curling rink in Craiglockhart Woods when the Green Flag will be raised. There will be some light refreshments available, the opportunity to socialise and to find out more about Easter Craiglockhart Hill Local Nature Reserve.

We hope you are able to come along.

Trail Clean Up Event – Sunday 9th October

bill.troup — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 11:30:19 +0000

This year’s Autumn Clean Up will take place on Sunday 9th October 2011 from 10am-12.00 noon. As usual there will be opportunity to help collect litter from the woods area. Gloves, bags and litter pickers will be provided.

Please meet at the gate by the pond on Lockharton Crescent at 10.00am.

All Welcome!

Green Flag Awards – People’s Choice – vote now

bill.troup — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 11:33:34 +0000

The Green Flag team are asking people to vote for their favourite Green Flag Park. The deadline for entries is the 12th September.

This is the second year that the public have been encouraged to vote for their local park or green space to make it the nation’s favourite park. Last year’s winner, Queen’s Park in Heywood, was featured on the BBC North West website, Manchester Evening News website and paper, and numerous other local media channels. The media coverage reaching over 1.2 million people in the North West.

It would be great to get a park from Edinburgh to win, or in the top 10 at least, so please vote for your park and encourage your friends to vote too. To vote go to the Green Flag website: http://www.keepbritaintidy.org/GreenFlag/News/Default.aspx?newsID=8069

Craighouse Development: Public Consultation Dates

bill.troup — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 13:18:45 +0000

The dates for the public consultation meetings which, we believe, form part of the formal consultation process are as follows:

Thursday 1st September 4pm – 8pm

Saturday 3rd September 10am – 4pm

Monday 5th September 4pm – 8pm

According to the developers these will “cover the same ground” – the aim being to provide a range of times for people to attend.

The developers will be making the case for a formal “change of use” to residential use (that is not the case at the moment and a change of use would have to be passed). They will also present their justification for the amount of new building they want to put on the site.

This is an important opportunity for the public to ask questions and air concerns and keep a close eye on what is happening to this very important and beautiful historic site and local resource. Please try and go along and tell friends, neighbours and other interested people or forward this information.

All events will be held in the Old Craig Building (the pink building) on the Craighouse Campus site, Craighouse Road, Edinburgh, EH10 5LG.

New Facebook page for interested parties

Rosy Barnes has set up a fledgling Facebook page for anyone who wants to keep informed about this and who cares about the site. It is called Friends of Craighouse Grounds and Wood.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Friends-of-Craighouse-Grounds-and-Wood/197761196955401?ref=ts

You can tick “like” on the page and tell anyone else who wants to be kept informed to do this. This will keep you all informed of any meetings and dates that she knows of, relevant articles and information.

Rosy’s email address, if anyone wants to ask her anything, is rosybarnes@yahoo.com.

Food Fair

bill.troup — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 12:47:49 +0000

The Shandon Local Food Group are hosting their next food fair at Polwarth Church Hall from 11am to 2pm on Saturday 10 September 2011. There will be local produce on sale, a BBQ and cafe, children’s activities and much more! Entry is free.

Successful Summer Fete

bill.troup — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 13:37:31 +0000

Despite the poor weather the summer fete provided a fun day out for many in the local community who were brave enough to don their waterproofs and enjoy the activities and stalls. The fete raised £1,200 towards FCWNT funds which will be invested in projects and maintenance within the woods. This was an excellent achievement given the weather conditions!

Many thanks to all who made contributions of time, prizes and money for this good cause. To view a short video of the event please click here: Fete Video. If you would like to be involved in our 2012 Fete please go to our Contact page and send us an email.

Woodlands clean up event on Sunday 12th June

bill.troup — Mon, 02 May 2011 10:34:28 +0000

There is a woodlands and Nature Trail clean up event on Sunday 12th June which gives everyone a chance to help collect litter from the woods area. Gloves, bags and litter pickers will be provided. Please meet at the gate by the pond on Lockharton Crescent at 10.00am. We expect to finish before noon. All help is appreciated.