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December 2024 Groby Parish Council has been discussing whether to put solar lighting on one of the village parks. The suggestion was made at the November meeting in response to a call for a project to submit by January 10th for financial help from the Hinckley and Bosworth Parish and Community Initiative Fund(PCIF). This year the scheme has been updated to reflect the Council’s climate change priorities and this has reduced the length of time available to prepare applications.
If successful half the cost would be met by the Borough Council with a maximum grant of £12,000 available. The total available through the PCIF to support community projects in the parishes of the borough is £124,000, so it is competitive and an application may fail, though since 2005, over £1.9 million has been awarded to a total of 465 projects throughout the borough.
Applications score points for how well they meet a number of requirements, including the type of scheme, with the highest score going to climate change, carbon reduction, conservation and biodiversity projects. A solar project might tick this box, and may also score well with regard to design, maintenance, equality and ward councillor support.
Value for money and evidence of need is considered, but with Christmas almost here and the limited time available for consultation before applications are closed, and the fact that it is not linked to a village appraisal, village design statement or parish plan, it might not score highly in this category. With more time available a higher score could probably be achieved.
Members had quotes for a small project in front of them at the December meeting, but there had not been time to discuss how many people used the parks after the hours of darkness, why they go there, or where a small number of lights could be placed to maximise the benefits.
Compiling a wish list
Although members thought that there was insufficient time this year to assess, consult and prepare a submission by the deadline, such a project could be considered as part of a wish list of parish improvements and might be suitable for a future application. It was suggested that having a list of potential projects which were ‘oven ready’ would enable responses to be made to funding bodies much more quickly
April 2022 Groby is lucky to be located at the southern boundary of the Charnwood Forest area, with access to open fields and woodland on our doorstep. Martinshaw Wood, Sheet Hedges Wood and Groby Pool SSSI are within easy walking distance, with Bradgate Park, Beacon Hill and more a little further afield. The area around Ulverscroft Priory also provides delightful walking opportunities and is home to a hidden gem nearby – Lea Meadows, managed by the Leicestershire Wildlife Trust.
There are no facilities or car park, and after periods of heavy rain part of the meadow may be flooded. There may be cattle or even a bull present. So it’s not the place for a barbeque or a family game of soccer, and deviating from the footpaths may result in a lot of shoe cleaning before travelling home, in addition to causing damage in a very sensitive area.
But for the keen ecologist or environmentalist these considerations will be unimportant compared to the possible rewards - Lea Meadows can be traced back over seven centuries and appears to be part of a medieval assart, Lea Wood being the other part. An assart is an area of cleared woodland.
Ridge and furrow underlies some areas, parts which have been ploughed, probably in the 13th or 14th century when grassland had to be sacrificed to meet the immediate demands of a rapidly growing population. To protect the area from grazing animals like wild deer, a substantial bank and ditch was built around the assart and remnants of this can be seen just after entering the meadows from the east.
There are conifer woods all around. and a line of alder trees follows the unpolluted winding stream on the opposite side of the meadow, providing the perfect haven for the brook lamprey. Other fish, like bullhead, minnow, three-spined stickleback and brown trout, have also been recorded, along with white-clawed crayfish. Kingfishers are occasionally seen along the stream and the alders alongside are excellent for wintering flocks of siskin and redpoll.
The best time to visit is late spring, when the reserve is at its most beautiful. Then, in early summer pignut attracts chimney sweeper moths, while later in the summer the carpets turn the purple and blue of betony, harebell and devil's-bit scabious, among numerous species of grasses, sedges and rush. In wetter areas, many hundreds of common and heath spotted-orchids flower, with marsh speedwell and opposite-leaved golden-saxifrage. In drier parts bitter-vetch, great burnet, pepper-saxifrage and a few plants of saw-wort can be seen.
“It’s a lovely area of unimproved neutral/slightly acid grassland and part of the SSSI which covers the Ulverscroft Brook catchment,” explained a local expert. “The meadow flowers are remarkable with over 250 species in 12 hectares and, with all this un-spoilt primary production, these is a wonderful invertebrate population and bird life.”
Visiting
Travelling from Newtown Linford, pedestrian access is on on the left hand side of Ulverscroft Lane, 1Km from Sharpley Hill. From Markfield it’s on the right 400 metres past Polly Botts Lane.
When visiting remember to -
Stay on waymarked paths
Put rubbish in bins or take it home with you
Don't start fires or barbeques
Be careful of nesting wildlife
Google Lea Meadows you tube to watch a 7 minute video tour made during the 2020 lockdown. This article is based on information from the Leicestershire Wildlife Trust.
January 2022 It’s nearly 2 years since the arrival of Covid 19 and the lockdown that led to many more residents exploring the countryside around Groby. Although woodland walks increased in popularity it’s probably true to say that Sheet Hedges Wood, off Newtown Linford Lane, is still visited less than other nearby sites.
The wood, managed by Leicestershire County Council, was opened to the public in 1998 with National Forest grant aid together with funding from the County Council and Forestry Authority. Access is along a network of footpaths, and part of the woodland is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). New broadleaf planting has replaced the conifers that once stood there, and Sheet Hedges now has one of the best examples of ash and alder woods in Leicestershire. There’s a rich mix of native trees including oak, ash, wild cherry and hazel, and in spring the woodland floor is carpeted in the colourful flowers of bluebell, wood anemone, yellow archangel and red campion.
Two areas of woodland were separated by a field which has been planted with over 5000 trees to link them. In addition an area has been seeded with a mix of locally indigenous species of grasses and wild flowers, with the meadow being cut for hay annually in late summer.
The SSSI area of the site (the established woodland) was last assessed by Natural England in 2013/14. Most was given a condition status of unfavourable but recovering, but the north-east unit was described as declining to cover by non-native trees and shrubs.
One of the key issues affecting the condition of Sheet Hedges Wood SSSI is the frequency of invasive non-native trees, which in this case is primarily sycamore. Measures have been implemented to reduce the frequency of seed bearing sycamores, which is why some of the units were assessed as ‘Unfavourable – Recovering’. Ideally, Natural England would like to encourage more sycamore to be removed but the high frequency of ash complicates the issue due to ash die-back disease, which is now also negatively influencing SSSI condition.
As the latest condition assessments at Sheet Hedges Wood SSSI were carried out in 2014, it likely wouldn’t be targeted for a full assessment again for a few years. “For most sites we’d do this at least once every 6 years,” said a spokesperson for Natural England, “though for sites where changes are expected to be slow, such as woodland, we may do a condition assessment once every 10 years.”
Last year there were reports of excavations and the creation of unauthorised mountain bike tracks in the woods, so Natural England will liaise with the County Council and may visit and agree whether any remediation is appropriate. “ The impacts of mountain bikes may not automatically affect condition as it may be small scale or recoverable,” the spokesperson added. “The important thing to bear in mind here is, just because an activity may be illegal and damaging, it does not necessarily turn an SSSI into unfavourable condition.”
Although a small car park was provided at the woods, it has been closed for many years. The nearest parking is at Groby Pool, a few minutes walk away.
More information
Go to https://designatedsites.naturalengland.org.uk/SiteSearch.aspx, where you can search for Sheet Hedges Wood. You’ll find links to Natural England’s site specific views about management, a citation explaining Natural England’s reasons for designating the SSSI, and operations requiring Natural England's consent.
Wildlife Highlights
For botanists, or anyone else who likes to talk technical, the following text is taken from the Natural England website as the citation for it being designated a SSSI.
“The wood, which is basically of the ash-maple type, has developed on soils derived from strata of the underlying Glacial Boulder Clay and Triassic Keuper Marl. The woodland canopy is characterised by the abundance of ash Fraxinus excelsior together with smaller numbers of pedunculate oak Quercus robur, while the basic constituents of the shrub layer are hazel Corylus avellana, field maple Acer campestre, hawthorn Crataegus monogyna, elder Sambucus nigra, and privet Ligustrum vulgare, with rose Rosa spp. also common.
“The ground vegetation contains abundant tufted hair-grass Deschampsia caespitosa, rough meadow grass Poa trivialis, dog's mercury Mercurialis perennis, red campion Silene dioica and enchanter's nightshade Circaea lutetiana, together with a range of plants typical of ancient woodland, including yellow archangel Galeobdolon luteum, wood anemone Anemone nemerosa, wood millet Milium effusum, wood sorrel Oxalis acetosella, sanicle Sanicula europaea, ransoms Allium ursinum, toothwort Lathraea squamaria and giant bellflower Campanula latifolia.
“In the northern part of the wood sycamore Acer pseudoplatanus has invaded and modified the stand type, while in he south alder Alnus glutinosa dominates an area of woodland developed on wetter soils.
“Within the alder wood the shrub layer is characterised by the presence of dogwood Swida sanguinea, Hazel Corylus avellana and guelder rose Viburnum opulus, while the ground vegetation contains abundant Mercurialis perennis and lesser celandine Ranunculus ficaria, and frequent bugle Ajuga reptans, marsh marigold Caltha palustris, cleavers Galium aparine and wood avens Geum urbanum.
“The centre of the wood is largely bare of trees and is dominated by bracken Pteridium aquilinum.”
2021 As the weeks of Covid enforced confinement have turned into months many residents have put on their walking shoes to get their regular exercise fix with a local walk. Some will venture off the roads without hesitation in all weathers. Others will be more cautious and may decide that in wet, muddy and slippery conditions it is perhaps safer to stay on well maintained footpaths. Click map to enlarge
Both groups may have their favourite walks, some into the countryside but some perhaps a more urban stroll to the local parks or the Millenium Green. From time to time it’s nice to find somewhere new to visit, and there are a few sites along the A50 where you won’t have to dodge others to maintain social distancing. But if you are in the cautious group you should ideally visit when it is dry underfoot.
Glenfield Wildlife Meadow
This meadow is opposite the Millenium Green, on the Leicester bound side of the A50. The entrance is opposite the bus gate, which includes pedestrian/cyclist crossing lights. Managed mainly as a wildflower meadow, it has an annual mow. A number of tree/scrub areas have been planted, including a few non-native species, to diversify the habitat and provide additional interest. Just outside the entrance gate and alongside the A50 is an urban drainage pond that provides a wetland habitat. Spottings on the meadow include toads, roe deer, dunnock, kestrel and the burnet companion. There is no safe parking on this side of the road, but when bus travel becomes more acceptable services 26, 27 and 29 stop outside the Millenium Green.
Gynsill Wood, Pond and Meadow
Cllr. Roy Denney, Chairman, Environment Recreation & Sports Committee, at Glenfield Parish Council, has written about this site in this month’s Glenfield Gazette. Roy has planted over 200 wild native bulb species in the woodland edges, the verges and the meadow.
In the Gazette he explained that the Council took over ownership last April but that although work is ongoing to restore the ecological balance, delays have been inevitable due to the virus.
“We have a comprehensive survey of the wood which has many interesting specimens but self seeded specimens, scrub and undergrowth has taken over in places and some clearance work is needed both to assist the more unusual trees and allow the rarer ground level plants to see enough light to be able to flourish. This should slowly open up the area and make it more a little more pleasant to wander through.
“We have had representatives of the Wildlife Trust, the Ornithological Society and the county bat expert out to weigh things up together with an expert on pond maintenance. Some work on the pond is due to commence shortly as well as the installation of bird and bat boxes. Our ground staff are mowing the grass paths as regularly as the weather permits and the areas which are left to encourage wild flowers, will have the annual flailing any time now. The hedges are invaluable homes to some species and bats use them as foraging routes so we wish to leave them as undisturbed as possible, but we have to keep the road side face trimmed to stop it intruding into the pavement and road.”
The meadow is situated between Gynsill Lane and the Premier Inn Hotel and restaurant, about a ten minute walk from the Millenium Green along the A50. Like the other sites mentioned there is no visitor car park. It is a large grassland area surrounded by mature hedges and trees. Grass paths are regularly mown but the remainder is cut only once a year to encourage wild flowers. There is a copse in the south west corner and scattered trees in the meadow. The rough grassland attracts many invertebrates and the hedges and trees offer good habitat for birds.
Turning left off the A50 at Glenfield Turn roundabout, both the entrances to the wood and the meadow can be found on Stelle Way, which is on the right hand side. Paths through the wood can sometimes be muddy. Some of the trees were planted as memorial trees. There is also a sizeable pond in the south-west corner with fluctuating water levels.
The Orchards, Groby Road
For those with some strength left in their legs, or petrol in their cars, here’s another site to visit on the A50. This site remains relatively undisturbed and has been described as “a hidden gem waiting to be explored.” The Orchards is wedged between housing developments and the City Farm on Anstey Lane. It’s on the bus route but parking is limited to roadside parking in nearby streets. Pedestrian access is from Groby Road (downhill from the BP garage) or public footpath leading from the City Farm off Anstey Lane.
Despite the name you shouldn’t expect neat rows of fruit trees. The site was previously orchards and allotments which were decommissioned and allowed to grow wild for some time. Since 1985 it has been in some form of conservation management and is currently being managed by the City Council’s Leicester Environmental Volunteers and Parks Services.
The site has relic privet hedgerows, old fruit trees and a fine display of lupins which are indicators of its former use. Some of the old hedgerows still act as boundaries to compartments and the more structured layout of the former allotments.
A good network of pathways provides access to the woodland, grassland and scrub areas. The woodland contains mixed broadleaf trees and provides valuable habitat for birds and small mammals. Some areas of grassland have reasonable diversity and scrub areas contain gorse and bracken not normally found within the city. Peacocks don’t get spotted on Groby’s well cultivated allotments, but one was reported at the Orchards last April.
Cllr Roy Denney asks visitors to report any unusual flowers or birds etc they see to www.naturespot.org.uk. The website has proved a useful source to supplement the information in his Glenfield Gazette article.