North Nibley Parish Council has a working party, co-ordinated by Chairman Roly Brown. If you would like to get involved or for any additional information, please contact Cllr Brown directly (cllrrbrown@northnibleyparishcouncil.gov.uk).
Biodiversity Based Talks
The Village Hall are organising a series of Biodiversity based talks. The details are below. Please support it if you can:-
Upcoming Actions and Events:
Biodiversity Day – There has been some informal talk of a Biodiversity Day in the Parish. This might involve a work party to carry out practical work (e.g. tidying up the Churchyard), talks on topics of interest and the offer from those with renewable energy installations to open their homes for interested people to learn more about what they can do with renewables at homeowner level. This is still an embryonic idea so if anyone has any thoughts or suggestions on this then please let me know.
Biodiversity Mapping – The Parish Council are updating their tech (hence this new email address) which Nibley Resident, Chris Mewse, has been instrumental in organising. As part of that, Chris is developing a mapping function to record where biodiversity activities are taking place in the Parish. We also hope that this map might be something we can use for hedgehog sightings so that we can understand where they are and what we can do to help them.
Hedge Planting/Volunteering Opportunities – You will hopefully have seen emails from Julian Moss regarding opportunities to volunteer with some hedge planting that has been taking place in the Parish (and which will be mapped as above). The next date for this is this Sunday 15th December – details here:- https://www.wottonareacan.org/event-details-registration/volunteer-day-tyndale-meadows-2024-12-15-10-00 . We agreed at the first Biodiversity meeting that this email list would be an open list so if anyone else has any initiatives that need to be shared, please feel free to circulate them.
Wotton Area CAN –
15 Apr 2025, 19:30 – 21:30
Wotton-under-Edge, The Chipping, Wotton-under-Edge GL12 7AD, UK
Join John Parker from the Arboricultural Association for an insightful talk on the crucial relationship between trees and climate.
Keep an eye on the Wotton Climate Action Network website (www.wottonareacan.org) for details of other relevant events and talks.
Community Meeting – Parish Council held a community meeting on the 22nd October 2024 which was very well attended. Brainstorm notes from this meeting can be viewed from the documents below.
Past Actions and Events:
Biodiversity Group Catch Up – 22nd April 2025
Many thanks to the nearly 20 people who attended the meeting and to those who sent their apologies.
By way of informal minutes, this is a summary of what we discussed:-
Hedgehogs – Aileen Kirmond and Julia Meyer gave us some very useful background information on hedgehogs. UK population has diminished from 30 million in the 1950s to one million now. We discussed hedgehog habitats and people were keen to know how to make suitable (and cat-proof) hedgehog boxes. It sounded like we have a reasonable population of hedgehogs in North Nibley to start from but more could be done to improve the available habitats. There is a plan for a map to be added to the Parish Council website so sightings can be plotted. If you find a dead hedgehog, these can be sent off free of charge for a post-mortem which helps to inform on their relative health (please contact Aileen if you need more info on this
aileen.kirmond@gmail.com). Julia has obtained some road signs to warn drivers of the likelihood of hedgehogs on the road. Some suitable locations were agreed. It was agreed that an article could be submitted to OTE and information distributed through the school and pre-school to raise awareness.
Glow worms – Jules Miller had emailed to say that she had started a Nibley Glow Worm project, collating information on sightings. With advice from Bel Whitwam, Jules will organise some evening walks to count the population on the Knoll.
If anyone would like to help with this then please contact Jules jules2field@hotmail.co.uk. Counts have taken place at Coombe Hill and the data is available on
www.irecord.org.uk. Jules had also contacted the Monument Trustees to ask about not lighting the monument during the key glow worm mating season of June and July. Some of the Monument Trustees were present so we were able to discuss the practicalities of achieving this and bearing in mind the income that would be lost if this happened. It was agreed that the bookings can be reviewed nearer the time to see if at least some dark periods could be achieved this year and then to use the coming months to learn more about what effect the lighting (and other factors) may or may not have on the glow worms so that lighting can be managed with more notice for next year. It was also thought that the glow worm initiative could form part of a management plan for the Knoll (see below).
Knoll Management Plan – Following the (very wet!) walk to the Knoll earlier in the year, it is suggested that a management plan for the area would be useful. Working with the Monument Trust, Knoll Trust and Parish Council as the three landowners of that area, a consensus could be reached on the ongoing management of the area. If funding could be found to create this plan then it would identify what could be done to improve habitats for different species of flora and fauna. It may also then be a tool for unlocking funding to help with the management of the area. Another possible outcome would be a small number of information boards to inform visitors of the management objectives. I am in touch with Megan Adamou from the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust about this type of initiative. It was also noted that the Monument Trustees are keen to get help with fundraising to re-gild the monument cross in this the 500th anniversary year of William Tyndale’s bible translation.
New Play Area – Some concerns had been raised about how the proposed new play area adjacent to the Primary School would interact with the existing orchard planting there. It was confirmed that there is no intention to remove any of the trees in this area as part of the playground work. In fact, the initiative is likely to lead to some modest additional planting, creating a more accessible natural environment for the school. A further meeting will take place on this in due course and anyone is welcome to attend Council meetings to hear of further progress in the coming months.
Planters on traffic island – Jean Palmer very kindly tends the planters on the island opposite the Black Horse but would be willing to pass the responsibility on if someone would like to take it up. There was a discussion about whether this could be a small but highly visible illustration of North Nibley working on biodiversity and the suggestion of increasing pollinating plants was considered to be the best idea. Volunteers are encouraged to come forward.
Village Hall Biodiversity Talks – Following Peter Kirmond and Megan Adamou’s recent well attended talk, this series continues with the next on
Friday 23rd May at 7.00pm for a 7.30pm start at the Village Hall. The next talk is entitled The Accidental Ecologist and will be given by Julian Moss about his discovery of nature’s wonders on his smallholding in Waterley Bottom. Free entry. (
www.northnibleyhall.org.uk)
Future of the Biodiversity Group – We had a general discussion about the future of the group. Everyone seemed reasonably happy with its informal nature and that various offshoot initiatives are taking place. It was acknowledged that the meetings are a case of ‘preaching to the converted’ so it would be good to get wider exposure. The meetings could be advertised more widely than just this email distribution list, although that list is growing as more people hear about it. The idea of having a regular page or half page in OTE for Biodiveristy was raised. This will depend on available space and will require someone to take on the co-ordination of the page. It was suggested that meeting quarterly is probably about right.
As you will see, there are plenty of ideas and some volunteers are already picking up different aspects. To make more progress we will need others to take up some of the other initiatives. Please let me know if there is anything you would like to do or help with.
Thanks again,
Roly
Walk to The Knoll – Sunday 26th January to look at the land owned by the Council (being part of the quarry and part of The Knoll itself). This is partly to familiarise ourselves with the boundaries and look at the Council’s responsibilities but it is an opportunity for anyone else who would like to join us to come along and talk about how that part of the Parish could be managed in the future – or just come along if you fancy a walk and a chat! We will be meeting at the cemetery at 10.00am that morning.
About our Biodiversity Obligations:
In the Stroud District, Town and Parish Councils have a responsibility to support biodiversity conservation in their local areas. These obligations are guided by the Stroud District Council Biodiversity Policy, which aims to enhance and protect local wildlife and ecosystems.
Key obligations include:
- Developing a Biodiversity Action Plan: Parish and Town Councils are encouraged to create their own biodiversity policies and action plans. This includes identifying local species and habitats that require protection and setting measures for their conservation.
- Integrating Biodiversity in Planning: Councils should consider biodiversity in their planning processes, ensuring that new developments or public projects don’t harm local wildlife or ecosystems. This could include green spaces, wildlife corridors, or the use of native plant species.
- Promoting Awareness and Engagement: Councils are expected to engage the local community in biodiversity initiatives, raising awareness about the importance of biodiversity and encouraging residents to take part in conservation efforts.
- Monitoring and Reporting: Councils are encouraged to monitor the health of local ecosystems, reporting their findings to Stroud District Council and ensuring any threats to biodiversity are addressed promptly.
- Collaborating with Local Groups: Working with environmental organizations, schools, and other groups to promote biodiversity conservation at the local level is key to creating a cohesive, district-wide approach.
By complying with these obligations, Town and Parish Councils contribute to Stroud District’s overall biodiversity goals and work towards a more sustainable future.
