The United Kingdom Butterfly Monitoring Scheme (UKBMS) is one of the longest running insect monitoring schemes in the world. Starting in 1976, the scheme is one of the most important resources for understanding changes in insect populations. As part of this, Chloe from the Green Spaces team has been leading weekly transects around Peel Park […]
Cubs Community Project
The Green Spaces Team linked up with the 109 Loyola Scout Group, Oswaldtwistle on the 18th February for some conservation management work. Sixteen Cubs, Beavers and Scouts along with the help of some of the leaders all came along to Spout House Community Woodland in Huncoat to help remove guards from the trees that were […]
Family friendly self-led Easter Egg Trail in Woodnook Vale!
The Green Spaces Team have created a family-friendly Easter Egg Trail that is now up in Woodnook Vale for the Easter Holidays! Follow the map below to find all 9 hidden letters, and unscramble them to unlock a spring-themed word! Follow THIS LINK to submit your word and be entered into a PRIZE DRAW! Contact […]
Tree Planting Sessions in March with the Green Spaces Team
The Green Spaces Team are hosting four tree planting sessions across Hyndburn this March! See below for dates, times and meeting points. Contact Helen for more info helen.earnshaw@prospectsfoundation.org.uk
Habitat Piles and Maintenance – Woodnook Vale
On the 21st February the Green Team Volunteers were at Woodnook Vale conducting some site maintenance and biodiversity improvements. There was a large amount of brash left over from the recent felling works at Woodnook, this work was issued due to the presence of Ash trees suffering from Ash dieback disease. This disease weakens Ash […]
Winter Tree Identification Walk – Whinney Hill
On the 17th February the Green Team organised a winter tree ID walk with Prospects very own Woodland’s Officer, Gareth Muir. Attendees learnt how to identify tree species using different features such as twigs, buds, bark, growing habitat and surrounding habitat! This is quite a bit more tricky in winter due to the lack of […]
Walk Leader Training
On the 8th February Prospects again asked for Paul Shoreman to come in and provide us with some training for staff and volunteers. This time, Paul was teaching us how to lead a guided walk. This involved learning about the different types of access and the legality of routes, how to plan and prepare for […]
Barbed Wire Removal – Hollins Woods
On the 7th February the Green Team Volunteers were at Hollins Woods giving the area some much needed care. Using safety gauntlets, goggles, wire cutters and builders bags we safely removed barbed wire from a derelict fence. Some of the fences had been uprooted which had left loose barbed wire along the floor, which was […]
Maps and Compass Training
On the 1st February the Green Spaces Team organised for Paul Shoreman to provide free training for Prospects staff and volunteers. Paul is a ranger at Lancashire County Council who manages around 85 sites across Lancashire. The training involved learning the features of a compass, how to read contour lines on a map, and how […]
Tree Guard Removal – Spout House Woodland
On the 24th January and the 28th February 2023 the Green Team Volunteers were at Spout House Woodland removing old tree guards from the woodland. The trees had outgrown their protective shields and so they needed to be removed in order to promote a continued, healthy growth. Tree guards had been tied to wooden stakes […]
Spring Hill Primary School – Eco Warriors and Garden Gang Session
On the 23rd June, the Green Team headed over to Spring Hill Primary School to assist with the cleaning up of their forest school. Activities for the day included: Using shovels to remove built up soil from a firepit area. Trimming brash piles and using the cuttings to make habitat piles which promote wildlife and […]
Festive Wreath Making Sessions
Throughout the festive period, the Green Spaces put on some free wreath making sessions as a way for people to learn a new skill, collaborate with local organisations and provide a warm, welcoming environment for people to enjoy. We used fresh foliage sourced from Hyndburn’s woodlands, local florists and garden centres to allow people to […]
Christmas Gift Making Sessions
During the lead up to Christmas, the Green Spaces team held weekly festive-themed craft workshops at the PROSPECTS Foundation office. The idea behind this was to give people the opportunity to learn a new skill, create an extra-special homemade gift and save a few pennies. Each session was based on a different gift, including the […]
Seed Bomb Making at Bullough Park
On the 19th of November the Green Spaces Team were at Bullough park hosting a seed bomb making event. We had our Prospects marquee set up with tables containing mixing bowls of seeds and air-drying clay. The seeds we used were all native wildflower seeds which were; Corncockle, Cornflower, Corn Chamomile, Corn Marigold, and Common […]
Dry stone Walling – Hollins woods
Between the 11-12th November the Green Spaces Team participated in a dry stone walling course led by Louise Kirkbridge, the course took place in Hollins woods on a section of drystone wall that had fell into disrepair. The wall was first dismantled down to the foundations and the stones laid out according to size, guide […]
Cutting, Raking and Seed Sowing – Pocket Park
On the 14th October the Green Spaces Team collaborated with the SuperSlowWay project to assist in the creation of a wildflower meadow at the Pocket Park in Accrington. The Green Team used both traditional scything methods and strimmers to clear the area of vegetation, cuttings were then raked off the land to remove as many […]
Scything and Tidying – Woodnook Vale
On the 27th September the Green Spaces volunteers were at Woodnook Vale, at the Nuttall street entrance, where the area adjacent to the path and the verges along the path were overgrown with brambles and nettles which reduced visibility and made access more difficult. To remedy this the team used traditional scything techniques to cut […]
Scything Course – Milnshaw Park
On the 21st September Prospects’ staff and the Green Team Volunteers took part in a scything course delivered by Steve Tomlin. During the course, participants were taught about all the different components of a scythe, how to hone the blade with a whetstone and how to correctly set them up for an efficient cut. Once […]
Freshers Fair – Accrington and Rossendale
On the 13th September Prospects’ Green Spaces Team and the Peel Park Officer attended the Accrington and Rossendale College’s Freshers Fair where we held a stall. Our stall aimed to inform future college students about the various work done by Prospects and to gauge their interest in the environmental sector. We are pleased to report […]
August Walks Festival led by the Green Spaces Team
Throughout the month of August the Green Spaces team organised and delivered a series of 14 differently themed walks to encourage people to explore the wonderful outdoor spaces around them and to keep healthy. 5 of which were weekly butterfly survey walks. The walks we organised included: Geocaching Treasure Hunt, where participants followed treasure trails […]