Network Bulletin

www.tcv.org.uk/scotland

netw rk bulletin SPRING 2019

for TCV Scotland’s community Network

Working with willow – see page 3 Citizen Science pull-out – centre pages

The I Dig Tree planters in Scotland

Pictured here are pupils from Aviemore Primary School with their teacher Ms Miller and John Grierson, Chairman of Aviemore and Vicinity Community Council, who said: “On 28th February, I was joined by 21 pupils from Primary 6/7 at Aviemore Primary School to plant the trees, on ground owned by Aviemore Community Enterprise Co, at the rear of the old primary school. A few years ago, the primary school planted over 250 trees in the same area and the planting this time was to fill in spaces. Aviemore Primary School uses Milton Wood, which is next to the community ground, each week for outdoor learning and this was an opportunity to add another component to that learning.

The planting on this ground will eventually link with Milton Wood which is very well used by locals and tourist alike, and as a result of canvassing by Aviemore and Vicinity Community Council has ‘protected green area’ status in the Cairngorms National Park Local Development Plan.”

2018/19 is the 4th year OVO Energy has partnered with TCV to sponsor the I Dig Trees campaign, in which community groups have helped to plant an incredible 728,000 trees right across the UK! The free trees are enhancing a variety of landscapes, both urban and rural, and provide valuable habitats for wildlife of all shapes and sizes, as well as improving air quality. The trees have been supplied in packs of native species including common alder, blackthorn, goat willow, hawthorn and silver birch. Over the current planting season, 160,000 trees have been planted by 320 groups and schools throughout the UK, as well as many of TCV’s own volunteers. Here in Scotland, 23,000 trees have been planted by 67 community groups in locations as far afield as the island of Sanday, in the Northern Isles, to Gretna Service Station by the border with England, and from Oban in the west to Dundee in the east.

“Our tree order was for Gifford Community Council. Members of the Community Council, East Lothian Countryside Ranger Service and the Junior Rangers planted the trees. The Junior Rangers are a group of about 15 secondary school children who join the Countryside Rangers every Friday afternoon to undertake conservation tasks.

We were delighted with the variety of trees and we have tried to mix them randomly along a ten metre wide strip along the side

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NCCV tree planters, see page 6-7. of the fields. I have been amazed at how many people have commented about the trees already. A number of people walk around the fields, either as part of a circular walk or on the way to a viewpoint. Thank you for the trees!”

Nick Morgan Gifford Community Council TCV would love to continue partnering with OVO Energy to support another year of I Dig Trees, and hopefully work toward a grand total of 1 million trees being planted over the next two years.

Abundant Borders Acorn Club (Eglinton Country Park) Annan Rotary Club Aviemore & Vicinity Community Council Baillies of Bennachie Balloch Wood Community Venture CLEAR Buckhaven & Methil Darcy’s Equine Assisted Learning Centre (Strathaven) Dornoch Brig Dunnet Forestry Trust East Kilbride Housing Association Edinburgh Forest Ellon Academy Memorial Community Garden Embo Trust (Urras Euraboil) Evanton Wood Community Company Fife Coastal & Countryside Trust Fife & Kinross Bat Group Findhorn Hinterland Trust Friends of Carcant Friends of Dean Castle Country Park Friends of Figgate Park Friends of Kinneil Friends of Inchyra Park Friends of Newtonhill Woodland Friends of the Pentlands Friends of Spiers Gibshill Children’s Centre (Greenock) Gifford Community Council Glenbrae Children’s Centre (Greenock) Greenhead Moss Conservation Group Helmsdale Kitchen Garden Helmsdale Woodlanders Inverclydebuzz John Muir Group (West Lothian) Lairg & District Learning Centre Lanark Sensory Garden Group Leadhills and Wanlockhead Railway Heritage Association LOST – Learning Outdoors Support Team (East Ayrshire) Levenmouth Academy Bat’s Wood Project Lowther Heritage (South Lanarkshire) Lowther Hills Ski Club CIC (South Lanarkshire) MacDougall of Dunollie Preservation Trust (Oban) Muiravonside Conservation Volunteers National Trust for Scotland (Aberdeenshire) Northern Corridor Community Volunteers (North Lanarkshire) Noss Forest (Wick) Organic Growers of Fairlie Palacerigg Volunteer Group Polbeth and West Calder Community Garden Portobello Timebank Railway Cottage Nursery (Barrhead) ROC Gardening Group (Stirling) Root & Branch (Dundee) Rothiemurchus & Aviemore Tennis Club Sanday Community Garden (Orkney) Smailholm Village Hall Southwest Community Woodlands Trust Stewarton Woodlands Action Trust Stoneheap Woodland Action Group St Mary’s Primary School (Cumbernauld) The Ecology Centre The Green Team (Edinburgh & Lothians) Wester Ross Growing Communities Association White Lady Mountain Bike Club (Bo’ness) Woodland in Moniaive Wooplaw Community Woodland 1st Thurso Boys Brigade

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A natural weave The front cover photographs show willow weaving being used for various products and landscape features. A recent TCV training course gave a group of beginners the opportunity to try their hand at this traditional craft. Using lengths, or rods, of willow, the weavers made a basket which they were able to take home at the end of the day. Being a flexible and natural material, willow has been used for hundreds of years for a wide variety of products including baskets, hampers, fishing creels, chairs, and is now even used for caskets in natural or ‘green’ burials.

The basket making course was led by Geoff Forest who has been willow weaving for over 20 years, and who runs training events and workshops for a wide range of community and environmental organisations, as well as undertaking commissions for unique products and sculptures. Geoff’s work is featured on his website at www.geoffforest.co.uk We are planning a ‘Willow Plant Support’ course with Geoff in April, and another ‘Beginners Basket Making’ course in July – visit the TCV Scotland Eventbrite page for details. And Geoff has been working with TCV and other volunteers to make a range of willow features such as obelisks (see front cover) for the wonderful Gartnavel Community Garden in Glasgow.

Willow can also be used for outdoor structures such as arbours, arches, domes, screens, hurdles and fences, including fedges – a fence/hedge! Some of these features use ‘living willow’ which roots in the soil and continues to grow. If you’re considering a living willow feature, bear in mind it will need annual pruning or it can get out of control!

Moira Spring 2019

“I really enjoyed the willow workshop – it’s quite “mindful” because getting it right needs just enough concentration and you can escape your mind for a while.”

In habitat conservation, one use for willow is in stream and river bank stabilisation. By making a willow wall, the roots of live willow help bind the soil and protect the bank from erosion. This willow ‘spiling’ is a more natural alternative to the hard engineering of gabions etc, and is something that can be done by volunteers, an example being the Friends of Burdiehouse Valley Burn Park, pictured below.

Gartnavel Garden volunteer donald anderson

“I attended the Beginners Basketmaking course with my father and sister – we all had a great day and created baskets which are currently in use in our kitchens holding eggs and biscuits. Geoff was a great trainer with a lot of patience and knowledge.”

Geoff Forest explaining the finer points of basket making.

Further information: • There are many different varieties of willow which can be grown from cuttings or coppiced, and there are some commercial willow growers.

Further information about willow suppliers, makers, courses etc can be found at www.willowscotland.wordpress.com • The Scottish Basketmakers’ Circle exists to promote basketmaking and allied crafts, including chair seating and environmental sculptures in Scotland. www.scottishbasketmakers.org

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A rare tail

Developing Wild Skills

Amy Styles with the Wild Skills trainees: At the front, left to right: Amy, Liam Morton and Craig Thomson. At the back, left to right: Johnny Short, Claire Mackenzie and Nicola Dempster.

A group of young people have recently joined TCV as trainees on the yearlong Wild Skills programme being run with support from Community Jobs Scotland. The trainees, who come from Central Scotland including Stirling and Clackmannanshire will get a wealth of hands-on experience of working in the conservation sector and help support three key areas of TCV’s work: This wonderful photo of a harvest mouse was taken by TCV’s Head of IT, Mark Slater, who is based in our Doncaster office. The studio shot shows this charming character balancing on a Globe Thistle* and earned Mark a ‘Highly Commended’ award in the recent Wild World photo competition, organised by the Society of International Nature & Wildlife Photographers. Mark took the picture as part of a wider project to document these tiny creatures, and says: “Due to loss of habitat they are becoming increasingly rare, as most natural species sadly are.”

The harvest mouse is the UK’s smallest mammal, weighing as little as a 2p piece.

As its name suggests, the harvest mouse was often associated with cereal crops such as wheat and corn, although its habitats also include reedbeds, tall grasses and hedgerows. It is the only British mammal to have a prehensile tail which it can use as a fifth limb to hold on to plant stems. The harvest mouse is mostly found from Central Yorkshire southwards. Its status in Scotland is a little unclear with just

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a few isolated records, particularly south of Edinburgh, but these may have been due to the release of captive animals. So, the chances of seeing one of these tiny rodents in Scotland are unfortunately very slim, but if you do chance upon one, why not send the details to your local biological recording centre or one of the national recording websites – see Citizen Science pull-out.

Conservation Status: Harvest mice are listed as a BAP (Biodiversity Action Plan) Species because they are thought to have become much scarcer in recent years, and they require conservation plans to reverse the decline.

Changes in habitat management and agricultural methods are thought to be the main cause for the loss of populations from certain areas, although there have been no reliable studies to quantify this change. Source: The Mammal Society *The Globe Thistle is popular with gardeners due to its striking shape and lovely hues of purple and blue. Although not native to the UK it provides plentiful pollen and nectar for pollinating insects like bees and butterflies, and so has found a place in many wildlife gardens.

Initially the spherical flower balls are spiky, and this appearance has led to the Globe Thistle being called the blue hedgehog. And its Latin name Echinops is derived from the Greek word ekhinos – hedgehog!

• Practical conservation – eg working with volunteers, creating and maintaining pathways, working on Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), and protecting and enhancing local wildlife and habitats through activities such as invasive species removal and wildflower meadow creation.

• Biodiversity – eg developing knowledge of local flora and fauna, recording local wildlife, and undertaking citizen science surveys with volunteers and community groups.

• Community engagement – working with local communities, supporting Green Gym projects including School Green Gyms, and supporting community events.

The programme is being co-ordinated by Amy Styles, Senior Project Officer, who says: “An important part of the programme is the trainees will help choose the activities they get involved in, based on their own interests and hopes for the future. This is a fantastic opportunity for all of them to boost their skills and confidence. TCV’s previous training programmes have had a great track record of helping young people further their environmental careers, and we’re confident Wild Skills will be no different!”

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Pull-0ut section

Discover your inner scientist! amanda malcolm

Citizen science – something for everyone There are many things we can do to enhance our wildlife and habitats, from putting up a bird box to planting trees, developing a wildlife garden or organising a community clean-up. Apart from practical conservation activities such as these, what else can we do to help the environment?

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ncreasing numbers of people are now getting involved in ‘citizen science’, the term used to describe public participation in scientific research. A more user-friendly description might be ‘recording nature’.

Citizen science improves your knowledge, is a friendly and sociable activity, and gets you out and about in our environment and greenspaces – so has health benefits too. Citizen science can also be fun, so there’s plenty of scope to involve children and young people, whether at school or community events, or through youth groups and award schemes like the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, or John Muir Award.

The good news is that you can do citizen science just about anywhere, from your back garden to the local park or nature reserve, so from the inner city to the remotest countryside. It can be something you do on your own, with friends or family, or with a local community or conservation group. And you don’t have to be an expert

amanda malcolm

Of course, amateur enthusiasts have been doing this for hundreds of years, but there are now more ways than ever to get involved.

Taking part in citizen science is one of the most useful ways you can help to expand our scientific knowledge and understanding of the state of the environment, and those areas where some action is required.

to get involved – that’s the whole point of citizen science! But once you are involved and ‘get your eye in’ it’s amazing how quickly you can become knowledgeable, even an expert, in your chosen topic(s).

kirsty crawford

At the heart of citizen science are volunteers and members of the general public who gather information, or data, which is of use to scientists, ecologists, government agencies etc.

Citizen science isn’t restricted to finding and recording rare or unusual species – it’s also about recording the everyday and the commonplace. And it isn’t just about recording wildlife – it also involves measuring things like air quality, litter, river levels, and the weather.

plants and trees is they aren’t going anywhere fast! For birds, binoculars (even cheap ones) are obviously a help, whilst for collecting insects a wildlife net is really handy. A small magnifying hand lens is also useful, as is a little collecting jar or tube to pop your finds in to have a good look, before releasing them again. Bug viewing pots combine the two and are great for children to use. The various creatures found in ponds, streams, river edges and coastal rock pools can be collected with a small dip net or kitchen sieve and placed in a white plastic tray with water to observe them, before returning your catch to where you found them. Wildlife monitoring equipment is available from a number of retailers, including www.nhbs.com and www.forestchoolshop.co.uk which provides a discount to groups belong to TCV’s Community Network.

Where to begin?

A good starting point is to take part in a national survey, and there are hundreds to choose from! For example, RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch is massively popular and involves over half a million people each year. Being an annual survey, this allows RSPB to monitor bird numbers and trends and helps us understand how particular bird species are doing over time. But if birds aren’t your ‘thing’, then how about butterflies, flowers, lichens, ladybirds, dragonflies, pond life, urban trees, jelly fish, red squirrels ...? Many of the surveys are listed at www.tcv.org.uk/scotland/discover/citizenscience/get-involved-citizen-science So, there are surveys available to monitor and record just about everything under

the sun, even the stars themselves! For recording wildlife, as well as the organised surveys you can collect casual records at any time of what you happen to come across. Whether organised or casual, a typical wildlife record usually includes the same basic information ie what (species), where (ideally a map grid reference), when (day/month/year), and who (took the record). More information about collecting records is available at www.brisc.org.uk/Whatisarecord.php

What equipment do you need?

At its simplest all you require is a keen pair of eyes (and ears), plus a notepad and pen. The advantage of looking at flowers,

To help identify what you’ve come across there are plenty of identification (ID) guidebooks available to suit all levels, starting with the popular Collins Gem series. And the Field Studies Council publishes a range of colourful fold-out charts covering a wide variety of wildlife and plant species. These are laminated so are perfect for using outdoors, and reasonably priced (mostly £3.30 – £4). For details visit www.field-studies-council.org/ publications.aspx And OPAL provides a range of free downloadable ID guides for a range of species – www.opalexplorenature.org A camera or smartphone is useful to take a visual record of anything unusual, or something you can’t immediately identify.

There are increasing numbers of phone apps to record your findings ‘on the go’ – visit www.environment.scotland.gov.uk And by using the Global Positioning System (GPS), most smartphones and some cameras can record the precise location a photograph was taken, called geotagging. This can provide valuable information for researchers and scientists.

Organise a BioBlitz*

Once you’ve got some records, what do you do with them? You can send your records to national organisations and surveys, or to your local biological recording centre (see the BRISC website overleaf). There is also a citizen science portal at www.environment.scotland. gov.uk where you can submit your observations. Whatever option you choose, most encourage you to upload your information online – it’s quick and easy, although you may have to register first.

And, as mentioned above, there are many mobile phone apps allowing you to upload information on the spot.

Citizen science activities often highlight species groups such as birds or butterflies.

Another approach is to discover as many species of plants and animals as possible within a specific area, during a set time period, often 24 hours, although it can be shorter. This is called a BioBlitz which can be a great activity for groups who care for a specific local greenspace such as a park, woodland or nature reserve. The information gathered can help guide the management of the site, and the data can also be fed into your local biodiversity records office or national surveys.

Stumped?

With a little experience and a few good nature identification guides, you can recognize much of what you encounter, but what if you come across something you can’t pin down? If you can take a photo you can upload it to a website such as iSpot or iRecord (see overleaf), where online communities of enthusiasts and experts will help identify your mystery find. One of the great things about citizen science is – you’re not alone!

A BioBlitz can also be great fun and open the eyes of the wider community, particularly youngsters, of the variety of nature living on their doorstep. Staff or volunteers from a local or national conservation organisation may be able to help organise activities or have an information stand to explain their work. A useful publication is the Guide to Running a BioBlitz, produced by the Natural History Museum, and available on its website at www.nhm.ac.uk – search for bioblitz.

kirsty crawford

What next?

*Bio – ‘life’ Blitz – ‘burst of activity’

A BioBlitz can be a great way to engage the local community, especially youngsters. TV celebrities are optional!

AMANDA MALCOLM

KIRSTY CRAWFORD

Students from Glasgow Kelvin College using the OPAL Guide to Freshwater Invertebrates.

TCV Scotland TCV Scotland is a partner in several initiatives encouraging citizen science: Scotland Counts

you can upload online. The surveys include the health of our soils and trees, the quality of our air and water, the distribution of invertebrates, the importance of pollinators and hedges, and the distribution of invasive species.

Further details at www.opalexplorenature.org

The Scotland Counts project provides opportunities for individuals and communities to develop their knowledge and skills to engage in citizen science. One way to do this is to encourage community groups, schools etc to run their own surveys to monitor and record their local environment, depending on their interests as a group. This could include looking at river levels, water quality (looking at the river invertebrates), recording species eg bees, butterflies and birds, monitoring air quality (looking at lichens), or recording litter. What could your group do?

For further details visit www.tcv.org. uk/scotland/discover/citizen-science/ scotland-counts or email citizenscience-scotland@tcv.org.uk OPAL Open Air Laboratories (OPAL) is a national initiative encouraging citizen science, particularly through OPAL surveys, the results of which

And TCV Scotland has produced several resources encouraging people to get involved, including: • Citizen Science in your Community • Citizen Science – A guide for teachers and support workers • Engaging volunteers in Citizen Science Projects • Citizen Science in the Environment – Ideas for the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award • A Guide to using social media for Citizen Science Projects These are available at www.tcv.org.uk/scotland/discover

Further opportunities Many of the national conservation organisations have opportunities to take part in monitoring and surveys relevant to their work. These include the British Trust for Ornithology, Buglife, Bumblebee Conservation Trust, Butterfly Conservation,

Menstrie Primary pupils monitoring stream levels and potential problems.

Froglife, Plantlife, RSPB, and the Woodland Trust, to name a few. And some of these organisations hold local training events to enhance volunteers’ wildlife identification skills and confidence, as do local biological recording centres. Visit their websites to see what’s on offer.

Most towns and cities, and some rural areas, have a natural history society which organises field trips, talks and other activities for people to find out about nature in their local patch. Natural history society members are normally very keen to share their knowledge, and new faces are always welcome!

Other sources of information: • Biological Recording in Scotland (BRISC) – www.brisc.org.uk • Biological Records Centre (BRC) – www.brc.ac.uk • National Biodiversity Network (including NBN Atlas Scotland) – www.nbn.org.uk • Scotland’s environment website – www.environment.scotland.gov.uk Wildlife identification and recording websites: • iRecord – www.brc.ac.uk/irecord • WildlifeLog – www.wildlifelog.org • iSpot – www.ispotnature.org

The great thing about citizen science is there’s something to suit everyone, whatever your interests, age, experience, time available or where you live – you can contribute something useful to our environmental knowledge and conservation. So, get involved now and discover your inner scientist!

julia duncan

kate sampson

An Arran Adventure

TCV’s Rosie and Carolyn with a budding ranger.

Planting trees with Ranger Jackie in Glen Rosa.

The families, including seven children, currently live in Livingston and were accompanied on the trip by TCV Senior Project Officers Rosie Walker and Carolyn Dick, and were later joined by Julia Duncan, TCV Business Development Manager.

The group stayed at the Shore Lodge on Brodick Estate, which is managed by the National Trust for Scotland. Along with the NTS Rangers Kate, Corrina and Jackie, the TCV team had planned a packed weekend of nature-based activities for the families.

got stuck into tree planting on the Sunday with the Rangers. They planted oak and the extremely rare Arran Whitebeam (which is only found only on Arran!), as part of a large-scale tree planting programme to reforest the Glen, which is being funded by the People’s Postcode Lottery.

Julia commented on the trip: The island adventure was a great success and feedback from everyone has been very positive. The weather was very mixed with high winds and rain on the Saturday, but this didn’t prevent the families being ready to go at 9.30am and joining in everything with great enthusiasm. The children’s favourite activity was “tree cutting” and they cleared a good swathe of Rhododendron ponticum as part of the wider estate’s woodland management programme. This involved using saws and loppers, and they enjoyed marshmallows and chocolate bananas cooked on a camp fire. On Saturday afternoon the families visited the local Octopus Centre which opened especially for them, and they then ventured out on a blustery seashore safari. After this, those with energy enjoyed Brodick’s new adventure playground.

“Thanks for all your help guys, hope you come back to Arran soon to visit your woodland!

Thanks too to Arran Outdoor Education Centre for lending the waterproofs and to Arran Coast for showing everyone some of our fascinating marine creatures at the Octopus Centre.”

Spring 2019

The families loved the experience and when asked if they would like to return, they answered: “Hundred times Yes!” Head Ranger Kate Sampson added:

rosie walker

The boys particularly enjoyed the Land Rover rides to all the activity sites, including a drive, then walk up Glen Rosa, where they

kate sampson

In early March, two Syrian refugee families braved the fickle Scottish weather to take the ferry crossing to Arran for a Winter Woodlands Weekend away to experience and enjoy some of the island’s beautiful scenery and natural attractions. And there were some hands-on conservation activities as part of the mix too.

The Arran trip was organised in partnership with West Lothian Council resettlement team, which TCV has been working with over the past two years to introduce Syrian refugees to the Scottish countryside and to help them integrate into their new surroundings and Scottish culture. We hope to build on the links made with the NTS Rangers and other local organisations, and to run further visits with more Syrian families to this beautiful island – often described as Scotland in Miniature.

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Community network member

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Happy birthday NCCV!

Volunteer and Funding Officer Claire Williams (right) and NCCV members clearing dumped tyres.

In April 2019, the Northern Corridor Community Volunteers (NCCV) celebrate their first year of operation, having become a formally constituted group a year earlier. In this short time the group has packed in an incredible amount of effort and activities to involve local people of all ages in helping to care for and enjoy their local environment.

The general aims and activities of NCCV are:

and resurfaced paths, planted hundreds of native trees, sown wildflowers, cleared burns and huge amounts of litter, and removed large swathes of non-native species such as rhododendron (there’s plenty left!). As well as the practical conservation side of things, NCCV members have also enjoyed willow weaving and other crafts, and a weekly Healthy Walking group has been established in Moodiesburn for local people to enjoy their natural surroundings and each other’s company.

• Promoting, Protecting and Nurturing Greenspace: clean-ups, improving paths, community growing and conservation projects • Cataloguing, Protecting and Encouraging Habitats: ecological surveys, gaining protection orders, improving habitats • Promoting Cultural, Educational and Historical Assets: promoting the history and culture of the area for future generations including links with the education service

As stated on the group’s website: This is a volunteer led project with the aim of creating a supportive environment for everyone to become involved in improving the communities we live in, reducing isolation, providing training and development opportunities, and supporting volunteers who face barriers to community volunteering, for instance due to low nccv

To carry these out, the group has been very busy on the ground and organises activities and events on a regular basis, often several times per week. So far, the group’s enthusiastic volunteers have opened-up

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‘Northern Corridor’ refers to the area in North Lanarkshire, just north of Glasgow, which encompasses the eight former mining and industrial communities of Glenboig, Stepps, Chryston, Moodiesburn, Mollinsburn, Auchinloch, Gartcosh and Muirhead.

Clearing rhododendron.

Conservation Officer Kris Hogg (second left) with a team of litter pickers.

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nccv nccv

Path improvements.

Tree planting in Mollinsburn. incomes, by providing travel expenses, lunch and refreshments and essential items like safety equipment.

Kris Hogg, the group’s Conservation Officer says: “We’re trying to get all 8 villages to work together – we’re actually very close, just a few miles from each other.

We want to improve our communities and at the same time increase local biodiversity.”

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NCCV has received funding from several sources including the Voluntary Action Fund to support its regular volunteer projects, and Paths for All’s Smarter Choices, Smarter Places Open Fund to deliver a one-year programme to promote local path networks, encourage use of everyday active travel to reduce increase health and reduce the problems associated with unnecessary traffic.

Group members have recently established Cloudberry Communities, a Community Interest Company, to help deliver greenspace and community led services and projects. Any profits from the company’s activities will be returned to projects in the local area and provide employment opportunities for local people.

TCV support Soon after the group was constituted it joined TCV’s Community Network and we’ve been pleased to support NCCV through the Chestnut Fund which provided tools, and to supply free trees as part of the I Dig Trees Campaign (page 2). And for two years Kris Hogg has been a TCV Volunteer Officer (VO) with the nearby Seven Lochs project, supported by TCV. In this VO role, Kris

has helped organise many of the project’s conservation activities – hands-on experience which he is able to use with NCCV. So, it’s been a busy and successful first year for the Northern Corridor Community Volunteers. Claire Williams, Volunteer and Funding Officer, says: “We’ve already been able to make tangible long-term improvements to wildlife habitats, community greenspace and paths in our villages. We couldn’t have anticipated such a positive response as a new group and want to make sure that everyone who wants to get involved is able to do so.”

Looking to the future, Kris adds: “Eventually, I’d like us to be in a position where we’re big enough to buy local land that comes up for sale – to plant new woodlands, and to restore other habitats – for example care for a local moss as a nature reserve. We want to have plenty of projects going on to provide opportunities for local people. That’s definitely the plan – to create and care for local habitats and help the community at the same time.”

Further details of NCCV, including upcoming events, are available on its website and Facebook page:

Members of the walking group.

Spring 2019

• www.ourgreenspace.org • www.facebook.com/groups/ NCCVols

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Free Community Network membership!

• Discounted insurance through Zurich Municipal • Access to the Grantfinder funding database and to the

The Network Bulletin is produced three times annually and contains news and features on Community Network member groups, plus TCV Scotland projects, programmes and volunteers.

Follow us online8 vimeo.com/ conservationvolunteers

Long-standing Network members, Alva Glen Heritage Trust.

Chestnut Fund • Discounts from TCV suppliers of tools, trees, and forest school equipment • Mini handbooks to download free • Up-to-date resources including health and safety and risk assessments • Access to the Community Hub – an online tool to record volunteer records, task information, collate data and create reports • Quarterly UK newsletters – which offer information, news, updates and stories from members of the Community Network

• Discounted Practical Handbooks • Additional information and support to groups in Scotland This offer is open to existing and new members, and has been made possible through the generous support provided by players of the People’s Postcode Lottery. Eligible groups include community organisations, Friends of groups, schools, wildlife groups, allotment and growing projects etc. Details of this great offer and an application form are available at: www.tcv.org.uk/communities

twitter.com/tcvscotland #JoinInFeelGood

The Network Bulletin is published by TCV Scotland.

Views and opinions expressed in the Bulletin do not necessarily reflect those of the editor or of The Conservation Volunteers.

©The Conservation Volunteers 2019. Charity registered in Scotland SC039302, and England 261009. TM The Green Gym programme is registered and protected across the UK and the EU.

Unit 7C Henderson Road Longman Industrial Estate Inverness IV1 1SN T 01463 811 967 E inverness@tcv.org.uk Unit M1 143 Charles Street Glasgow G21 2QA T 0141 552 5294 E glasgow@tcv.org.uk Jupiter Urban Wildlife Centre Wood Street Grangemouth FK3 8LH T 01324 471600 E a.hamilton@tcv.org.uk St Joseph’s Academy Grassyards Road Kilmarnock KA3 7SL T 01563 544304 E j.grant@tcv.org.uk

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Editor Graham Burns E g.burns@tcv.org.uk

TCV Scotland Head Office 24 Allan Park Stirling FK8 2QG T 01786 479697 E scotland@tcv.org.uk

in edinburgh, We’ve Moved To:

As any regular conservation volunteer will tell you, tea breaks are an essential part of the task routine – an opportunity to sit back and admire your handiwork whilst having a blether.

The average TCV mug can take a lot of use and abuse during its lifetime of dedicated service, so it’s great to have a fresh supply of this small but vital piece of kit, thanks to PG tips.

All TCV offices have recently received a batch of PG tips Communi-tea mugs to keep our volunteers topped up with the essential cuppa. Here, some of our Glasgow regulars are pictured with their freshly minted mugs.

9 West Gorgie Park Hutchinson Road Edinburgh EH14 1UT T 0131 664 6170 E edinburgh@tcv.org.uk TCV UK Head Office Sedum House Mallard Way Doncaster DN4 8DB T 01302 388883 E information@tcv.org.uk

[NetBul-Spring-19/GB/RB]

As part of TCV’s 60th anniversary celebrations during 2019 we are offering eligible groups a year’s free membership of the TCV Community Network, which encourages and supports community groups and organisations to enhance their local greenspaces. Community Network membership provides a number of benefits:

TCV Scotland’s community, health and environmental volunteering activities are supported by:

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