About Us
The Bolton Conservation Volunteers (BCV) are one of the region's best known conservation groups. Established over 40 years ago, it contains members of all ages who are interested in the care and maintenance of the local environment.
With BCV you can take part in woodland management, creating and looking after ponds, planting trees and hedgerows, rebuilding dry stone walls, hedge laying and much more!
Along with learning new skills you will get the chance to enjoy interesting places in your local countryside with like minded people.
The Work we do
BCV work on sites across Bolton and beyond including:
Doffcocker Lodge, Rumworth Lodge, Entwistle Reservoir, Ousel's Nest, Moss Bank Park, Moses Gate Country Park, Kearsley Moss, Firwood Fold, Eatock Lodge and many more.
In addition to these interesting sites work is also carried out at local schools helping with the construction and maintenance of environmental areas and wildlife gardens.
New Volunteers
If you are interested why not give it a try? You will find a warm welcome, make some new friends with similar interests and help make the world a better place.
The group meet outside The Sweet Green Tavern, 127 Crook Street, across from Sainsburys in the town centre on alternate Sundays at 9.45 a.m. (we depart for the task site at this time so please arrive no later). Most volunteers with their own transport go directly to the task site. The tasks are varied and detailed on our website - the link to this can be found below.
Please wear old clothes, strong shoes, work boots or wellies and waterproofs may come in handy! Please bring a packed lunch.
We meet Fortnightly on Sundays between 10:00 and 15:00.
For information about our next event, please contact us
Tom Bruce
07971 376253
http://boltonconservation.org.uk/task-calendar/
A few years ago Tom planted some apple trees for the Canal Society at Nob End. Our first task there was on Easter Sunday in 2022, in an area not far from the place where James Mason ran down the cobbles in Spring and Port Wine. Although I'm sure our own James would have preferred cider with Rosie, it was all a taste of honey and we looked forward to returning at a later date.
In the 2 years of Saturday nights and Sunday mornings the site had become over grown with willow herb, balsam, More.....
Bolton Green Umbrella was formed in 2016 to bring together all of Bolton's green groups, individuals and businesses in a network to further their mutual goals of protecting green spaces, encouraging wildlife, and improving the environment in and around Bolton.
To celebrate the group's success a grand green festival was organised with different groups showcasing the work they do in the areas where they work at numerous sites around Bolton. Bolton Conservation Volunteers chose to hig More.....
Bolton Conservation Volunteers
BCV have had another busy year. In 2022 we worked at The Barlow (formerly the Barlow Institute), Dunscar Woods, Longsight Park, Moses Gate Country Park, Doffcocker Lodge, Jumbles Country Park, Firwood Fold, Eatock Lodge, Ousels Nest Quarry, Moses Gate Country Park, and Chew Moor. We've planted trees, coppiced willow, laid hedges, managed woodlands, managed reedbeds, created and restored ponds, and made charcoal to name a few.
Conservation work, like More.....
Redbeds have been one of the UK's fastest declining habitats. Historically reeds were used for thatching, which because it was a widespread practice helped to maintain the health and extent of reedbeds, but as slate and other materials replaced reeds the maintenance of the beds lapsed and they began to decline. Some beds are still managed for thatch but it is only on a small scale.
In recent years reedbeds have had a renaissance for both commercial and conservation purposes. Reedbeds More.....
Forgive me Green Umbrella for I have sinned, it has been nearly 18 months since my last post. I was having a relaxing Sunday when I heard a voice from above, and the voice said 'THOU SHALT WRITE NEW STUFF,' then it mumbled something about Wi-Fi and disappeared leaving me a little perturbed. So for my penance I've written some new stuff and here it is.
Since our emergence from Lockdown we have pretty much returned to business as usual, the number of volunteers on tasks is back to pre-c More.....
After months of nothing but Zoom meetings and virtual conservation we've unboxed our voluntreers and put them back in the real world: wellies, mud, dirt, and aching limbs, happy days are here again. Our first post-lockdown task of 2021 is in the same place as the last task before the first lockdown of 2020, Firwood Fold. We're still limiting our numbers on task and keeping everything clean and safe, but in the coming months we may be able get a bit bigger if all goes well.
So, here we More.....
Many thanks to Bolton Green Umbrella for donating money to us from the High Street Clean Up Fund. Prior to lockdown in March, the money was used in several ways, firstly it was used to renovate a stretch of dry stone wall at Firwood Fold, this also included training from a walling expert. This helped BCV's volunteers to improve their dry stone walling skills to use on future projects. The money was also used to buy new tools to replace tools that were worn or broken. Finally the remainder was us More.....
The shiny happy people at Bolton Conservation Volunteers are having to take steps to protect its members. BCV's members aren't just volunteers, they are family. For most of our family BCV's task days are an important of their lives, providing a chance to restore our natural landscape, help wildlife, and to meet up and socialise.
Covid-19 has changed all of that.
We are having to take the sad decision to disband for the duration of the pandemic. How long this will be we don' More.....
This year's Annual Dr John Leather Memorial Hedgelaying Competition was held on 23rd February and saw us return to Blackleach Country Park, the last time we were here was in 2013. The competition is held in memory or Dr. John Leather, a retired Bolton GP and enthusiastic hedgelayer. Before Dr. John passed away in 2003 he was BCV's hedge Jedi master, he taught us the ways of the pleach and how to be at one with the hedge.
The competition is intended to help pass on these skills to n More.....
Last year Bolton Conservation Volunteers (BCV) organised Wildfest, a celebration of nature, wildlife and the work BCV has done over the years. Assisted by the Darcy Lever Gravel Pits Action Group (GPAG) the day was a ridiculous success and even had coverage in the Bolton News. Sitting in The Sweet Green Tavern after the day was done we decided that we would do it again... and next time it would be even bigger.
Planning started almost immediately with ideas on how to improve things and More.....
It was a damp and drizzly start to our day at Firwood Fold but this didn't deter our wonderful volunteers who turned out in force as usual.
We are continuing our work to improve the drainage and paths around the Lodge by adding hard sand and grit to the paths this was then tamped down to level it all out. Drainage channels were also dug out and soil redistributed to improve the levels on the path. Behind the lodge several volunteers dug out a small test area to see whether it is More.....
Firwood Fold rang to the sound of rock hammers and weed whackers as Bolton Conservation Volunteers returned to work their magic. Due to a change of circumstances BCV decided to do their planned dry stone walling training at Firwood Fold instead of Entwistle Reservoir. Rock legend, Ben Barratt, gave our volunteers a masterclass in how to dismantle and rebuild a dry stone wall like the experts do. Meanwhile another team took to the woods to slice and dice the Himalayan balsam that blights so much More.....
BCV and The Friends Firwood Fold joined forces again to complete the footpath work around The Bunk. Last year we cut back scrub, planted new hedges and opened up the footpaths to allow more light and better access but we only got to as far as the top end of the pond. This time round on this part of the Kingfisher Trail we built drainage channels at problem areas, and cut back branches and dead wood right the way around this hidden gem of a site. Many thanks to Barb and Trevor and The Friends of More.....
Many thanks to Barb and Green Umbrella for the generous donation that was used to buy these spades, they rock. Their first outing was at the BCV Garden at Moses Gate Country Park where we laid hedges, managed overgrown vegetation in a pond, extended a dead hedge and re-planted snowdrops. We have been managing this site since 2016 and last year it was the location for our first ever Wildfest , an event we hope to repeat in 2019. Today's volunteers included Duke of Edinburgh Award students, More.....
Do you run a local group? We'd love to add your group to our growing list!
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