Wildlife Walks
WILDLIFE WALK INSECT HUNT BUTTERFLIES and DRAGONFLIES.
Awaiting Update of next Walk
Charge: FGCP Members £0.00 --- Non-members £1.00Meet outside Café 1899 Gedling Country Park
Leader: Helen Aplin, FGCP TRUSTEE |
The Friends of Greenwood Community Forum: is a network of groups that help to look after, improve and promote enjoyment of parks and green spaces within Nottinghamshire. We require a Secretary to support our committee by organising and taking notes of meetings, distributing letters/emails, and being responsible for keeping up-to-date contact lists and records. We are looking for someone who is reasonably organised, moderately computer literate and who has regular access to a computer. It isn’t necessary to be a member of one of our groups, but we hope you will have an interest in their aims and activities. You will need to be able to attend up to 8 daytime meetings a year, which will be within the area of Greenwood Community Forest – the districts of Ashfield, Mansfield, Broxtowe, Gedling or Newark & Sherwood. Whilst this post is unpaid, we offer expenses. Closing date Thursday 1st September 2022 For an initial discussion please contact: greenwoodforum@outlook.com or 0115 9932591 to find out more. |
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ANNUAL PARK NATURE SURVEY Saturday 20th August 2022 10.00 am – 4.00 pm The Friends of Gedling Country Park & Nature Reserve will be hosting a Nature Survey. Collect Survey Form from the FGCP Gazebo near the FGCP Compound (near bottom of children’s Play area). Use your ears as well as eyes – at this time of the year Green woodpeckers and Magpies are commonly heard chattering. Look out for the day flying moths – 5 and 6 spot Burnets should be flying. We shall be holding another Nature Survey in 2023 (Saturday 19th August 2023) and then annually on the third Saturday in August. This will enable us to compare the results year by year. Please come along and help it is really very simple. |
VOLUNTERINGInterested in volunteering, or helping in other ways? Please see our Donate or Join page for more information. Members now receive a 10% discount at the Visitor Centre ('Café 1899').
This web site provides information about Gedling Country Park and about the Friends of Gedling Country Park, which is a registered charity managed by its Trustees. Our main aim is to maintain and develop the country park for recreation and education for the whole community. We want to enhance access for all, enable volunteering and educational opportunities, increase awareness of the country park's history and heritage and enhance the biodiversity of its flora and fauna. |
VOLUNTEER DAYS(Meet at FGCP Container near bottom of children’s playground)
Come and join our happy little band to help: Maintain last year’s tree planting; Conservation of existing and creating new Dingy Skipper habitat; Clearing away grass cuttings to ensure wildflowers prosper; Willow weaving – fences and living structures such as bird hides; Scrub clearance in grassland area: Creating northern walkway. You will get hot, possibly muddy, probably scratched but you will have an enjoyable time and there may be coffee/tea and biscuits! Our Volunteer Days are as follows: Sunday 24th July 2022 10.30 am – 12.30 pm Sunday 1st August 2022 10.30 am – 12.30 pm Sunday 7th August 2022 10.30 am – 12.30 pm Sunday 14th August 2022 10.30 am – 12.30 pm Sunday 21st August 2022 10.30 am – 12.30 pm Sunday 28th August 2022 CANCELLED Sunday 4th Sept. 2022 10.30 am – 12.30 pm BE COVID AWARE Unfortunately, most work is reliant on good weather. We will update notices on Facebook, the Website and by email whenever possible. We will meet at the FGCP Compound from 10.00 am aiming to leave the compound at 10.30 am. Returning at 12.00 noon for refreshments. |
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British Native Tree Trail - use the main menu above:WILDLIFE/BRITISH TREE TRAIL and click on links
Due to circumstances in 2020, most notably • an unseasonable dry Spring • COVID making less people available to nurture the trees
some of our trees will need to be replaced in Autumn. If we try to plant during the Summer then we know their chances of survival are reduced.
Any missing tree has a label attached to the signpost to help you recognise this.
Apologies that this has happened and we hope it doesn’t detract from your enjoyment of the trail.
some of our trees will need to be replaced in Autumn. If we try to plant during the Summer then we know their chances of survival are reduced.
Any missing tree has a label attached to the signpost to help you recognise this.
Apologies that this has happened and we hope it doesn’t detract from your enjoyment of the trail.
Wildlife Protection in relation to the Gedling Access Road
It is great to see the concern for the wildlife on the Park and we thought it might be useful to provide a few extra facts.
The former colliery site was owned by Harworth Estates who were the successors of the National Coal Board, and it had a legal obligation the landscape the site after the Colliery was closed in 1991; although further coal recovery from the slag heaps went on a few years after the closure.
It was Harworth that applied for planning permission for much needed housing along Arnold Lane and on Spring Lane. The remainder of the site was passed to the Notts County Council and later acquired by Gedling Borough Council.
The Trustees of the Friends åof Gedling Country Park met with VIA the GAR designers before the construction work started and were impressed by the measures included in the road design to protect wildlife.
The VIA Environmentalist surveyed the line of the road and identified the habitual routes of mammals and invertebrates and provided underpasses designed to Highways Agency standards at appropriate places. Badger mesh has been included along the length of the road and fences are planned to guide invertebrates, amphibians and badgers to the underpass crossings so they can safely follow their habitual routes. So the creatures moving across the GAR have far more protection than they would have from the other roads that surround the Park which are Arnold Lane, Mapperley Plains, Spring Lane and Lambley Lane non of which have wildlife underpasses.
The surveys did not find evidence of deer presence at that time so it was not discussed. Deer are timid creatures and like plenty of cover and generally move around after dusk when traffic and people movement are at their lowest. Road bridges for larger mammals are common in countries where migration or movement of large herds occurs along habitual trails but a bridge for a small number of wandering animals would not be viable and in fact we don’t want the deer to cross the road because they would be entering a mainly urban area.
Someone mentioned the deer at Wollaton Park which is an entirely different situation. The two herds there, one Red Deer and the other Fallow Deer are contained within the estate by high walls and cattle grids The herds are also “managed” and occasionally the Park is closed whilst selected beasts are culled to prevent the herd from growing too large for the size of the Park. The deer we see on GCP probably descended from animals that escaped from one of the Dukeries Estates in north Notts and are now roaming freely.
The Gedling Country Park was opened in 2015 and despite a long period of austerity resulting in Government cutbacks following the 2008 financial crash GBC have done very well to create the Park that we know and love. The Park is a designated Local Nature Reserve awarded on the basis of the Park Management Plan and the Friends work with the Council to help with the significant work that has to be done to ensure that the wide diversity of wildlife have an appropriate habitat.
Volunteers are always welcome.
It is great to see the concern for the wildlife on the Park and we thought it might be useful to provide a few extra facts.
The former colliery site was owned by Harworth Estates who were the successors of the National Coal Board, and it had a legal obligation the landscape the site after the Colliery was closed in 1991; although further coal recovery from the slag heaps went on a few years after the closure.
It was Harworth that applied for planning permission for much needed housing along Arnold Lane and on Spring Lane. The remainder of the site was passed to the Notts County Council and later acquired by Gedling Borough Council.
The Trustees of the Friends åof Gedling Country Park met with VIA the GAR designers before the construction work started and were impressed by the measures included in the road design to protect wildlife.
The VIA Environmentalist surveyed the line of the road and identified the habitual routes of mammals and invertebrates and provided underpasses designed to Highways Agency standards at appropriate places. Badger mesh has been included along the length of the road and fences are planned to guide invertebrates, amphibians and badgers to the underpass crossings so they can safely follow their habitual routes. So the creatures moving across the GAR have far more protection than they would have from the other roads that surround the Park which are Arnold Lane, Mapperley Plains, Spring Lane and Lambley Lane non of which have wildlife underpasses.
The surveys did not find evidence of deer presence at that time so it was not discussed. Deer are timid creatures and like plenty of cover and generally move around after dusk when traffic and people movement are at their lowest. Road bridges for larger mammals are common in countries where migration or movement of large herds occurs along habitual trails but a bridge for a small number of wandering animals would not be viable and in fact we don’t want the deer to cross the road because they would be entering a mainly urban area.
Someone mentioned the deer at Wollaton Park which is an entirely different situation. The two herds there, one Red Deer and the other Fallow Deer are contained within the estate by high walls and cattle grids The herds are also “managed” and occasionally the Park is closed whilst selected beasts are culled to prevent the herd from growing too large for the size of the Park. The deer we see on GCP probably descended from animals that escaped from one of the Dukeries Estates in north Notts and are now roaming freely.
The Gedling Country Park was opened in 2015 and despite a long period of austerity resulting in Government cutbacks following the 2008 financial crash GBC have done very well to create the Park that we know and love. The Park is a designated Local Nature Reserve awarded on the basis of the Park Management Plan and the Friends work with the Council to help with the significant work that has to be done to ensure that the wide diversity of wildlife have an appropriate habitat.
Volunteers are always welcome.
Postcard Picture Competition 2021
--------- Our Winners --------
Click Here
Sponsors and Partners:
Please go to our Sponsors and Partners page to see the list of organisations and individuals who have donated money, time and effort to help the Friends group and ongoing development of the park. This includes:
Please go to our Sponsors and Partners page to see the list of organisations and individuals who have donated money, time and effort to help the Friends group and ongoing development of the park. This includes:
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Gedling Country Park officially opened to the public on Saturday 28 March 2015
Gedling Country Park opened in style with a special community day launch hosted by Gedling Borough Council on Saturday 28 March 2015. The 240 acre site officially threw open its gates and over 2,500 visitors came and saw our magnificent new country park.
The Friends of Gedling Country Park were there on the day offering refreshments, park information and membership details. We would like to thank all of you who became members of the Friends of Gedling Park. All proceeds from the membership fees as well as from our refreshment sales will help fund a number of exciting future activities and developments for the park.
For more information, including a map of the events that were held on the day, please see our Opening Day page (under the NEWS & EVENTS section of this web site).
The Friends of Gedling Country Park were there on the day offering refreshments, park information and membership details. We would like to thank all of you who became members of the Friends of Gedling Park. All proceeds from the membership fees as well as from our refreshment sales will help fund a number of exciting future activities and developments for the park.
For more information, including a map of the events that were held on the day, please see our Opening Day page (under the NEWS & EVENTS section of this web site).
