Tor Hill Lane Update
Following the result of residents’ survey in October/November last year, when 80% of respondents supported an annual grass cut to help Nature on Tor Hill Lane, Sustainable Wells is pleased to announce that a Licence has been signed between Mendip District Council (to be transferred to Somerset CC in April 2023). The Licence is also supported by Wells City Council who are providing the insurance cover for the project.
“The plan is to watch and wait with a team of volunteers keeping a close eye on the grass verges along the path and carrying out activities at times that best suit Nature. Local people will have noticed that Idverde have cleared out the ditch either side of the pond to mitigate the risk of flooding and the hedge was cut before the end of February; a time chosen so as not to disturb nesting birds.” said Maddy, the project leader.
The annual grass cut will take place in July to give flowers a chance to seed, after-which a team of volunteers will rake up the grass to reduce nutrients soaking into the ground, making the soil better suited for wildflowers and so increase the biodiversity of the verges.
Before the cut, a survey of wildlife will be carried out in June, which will be used to assess our progress. We will repeat this annually to see how Nature takes over, with a little help along the way, we hope we will see more wildflowers and wildlife eventually.
To support our work, regular visits will be made to Tor Hill Lane and a WhatsApp group of “wardens” has been set up so that issues can be picked up and dealt with quickly.
We will have our first litter-pick with the wonderful help of Deborah Woolven-Orrett and her team and Tor Hill Lane volunteers on 14th March.
Local residents are invited to Walk and Talk events at 11am on Friday 24th March and 1.30pm on Wednesday 29th March, meeting by the wooden bridge near the pond; to continue with the conversation about how best to manage the area ( please email sustwells@gmail.com if you would like to join us)
As a local resident said: “This area is precious and there is nowhere else in Wells quite like it” It’s a wonderful place to appreciate our natural environment. To encourage more people to connect with Nature, there will be ‘Mindful’ event on 31st May led by Siobhan Goodwin, Community Engagement Manager, from Bishop’s Palace, with a team of volunteer helpers, who will facilitate family friendly activities along the path and surrounding meadow and woods. More information will be available soon, just watch our Events Page for more info.
We can all play our part to ensure this area is clean for Nature by please taking your litter home or by using bins provided, picking up your dog’s mess every single time and ideally keeping your dog on a lead along the lane.
Please email: sustwells@gmail.com if you wish to help with this project or to find out more.
