ECV answered the call from the newly formed Friends of Firs Farm to help them restore the small nature reserve which lies between 2 sports fields on Firs Farm Road. ECV had previously worked there between 1990 and 2007 but the area had been neglected and become a fly tippers’ paradise.

The Friends had mobilised, won a grant to reroute a water course through the reserve but also wanted it to return to a pleasant green oasis where people wanted to walk through.

The first task which ECV has led has been to establish a woodland path linking the two entrances. Whilst the Friends organised the materials, ECV provided guidance to them on the construction. On the first visit ECV members and the Friends, on a very wet day, cleared the route of brambles, ivy and a lot of ash seedlings. Working from both ends and meeting in the middle was a triumph in itself as the path became more and more muddy. Over the 2nd and 3rd visits 75 metres of membrane and woodchip was laid contained by recycling fallen logs, felled overhanging branches and thinning unwanted trees. The before and after pictures below show a vast improvement in such a short time. A total of 10 ECV members attended over these 3 visits and were ably assisted by the now more knowledgeable Friends. We will be returning to continue the good work.