Monthly Archives: September 2017

September 2017 Update

 

Planned Events for the rest of 2017

  1. Scrub and tree working party – date/s to be confirmed

    There are three main tasks:

    1. The orchard needs to be cleared of weeds etc, (the apples are splendid – help yourselves!);
    2. More willow must be cut back and shredded;
    3. Some small trees/saplings such as Oaks which are spread by birds, need to be moved.              Special thanks to local residents,  Richard and Jan who have donated a petrol strimmer which will make clearing scrub far more effective and achievable.

     

  2. WW1 Centenary Event on Sunday 3rd December 2017 @ 10.30 am.

This will be our major event of the year and we are trying to maximise publicity for it.  Bay Radio and the Lancaster Guardian are already interested. Do you have any other media contacts that might be useful?

As part of this event we now have funding (and agreement from the City Council) to install a boulder with a Memorial Plaque.  This will recognise the gift to the people of Lancaster from Miss Whalley in memory of her brother Julian Whalley who died of wounds on this date 100 years ago.  We are also purchasing a bench to be sited near to the boulder.  A local stone mason has been awarded the installation contract.

Dignitaries attending the unveiling include our local MP and our Mayor.  We are also involving local schools by encouraging them to contribute time capsules, provide a bugler to play the last post and a student to read  “For the Fallen” by local poet Laurence Binyon.

  • We shall need volunteers to help on the day by acting as stewards, erecting temporary safety barriers etc.
  • We would like a pebble from the Field to be taken to Julian Whalley’s grave in France.  The press are very interested in this.

Any volunteers? Please contact Margaret Wiggins – contact details below.

What have we done so far in 2017?

Working Party on Sunday 12th March (We hope to organise similar working parties in the near future.)

  • The City Council provided wood chips which the working party spread on the “informal” paths to make them more obvious and accessible.
  • Rubbish was collected.  We are finding that there is far less rubbish now that the Field is being managed.

Pedestrian Survey Sunday 2nd July. We had a one day survey of field use from early morning to early afternoon. 57 people used the field for a variety of purposes including many children playing football (complete with nets) and hide and seek.

National Heritage Open Day Saturday 9th September. We held a small event at the Gregson Centre to publicise FMWF, and our plans for the future , especially the Centenary Event in December.  If you would like hard copies of the leaflet about the Centenary event, please let us know.  We talked to over 20 individuals, some local and some from as far away as St Albans.  Thanks for the donations!

Japanese Knotweed The City Council are now treating the Knotweed.  They are also treating Knotweed outbreaks (identified by our members) upstream of the Field.

Funding Grants. Lancaster Green Spaces, the Lancashire Environment Fund and the Yorkshire Building Society have all contributed grants for which we are very grateful.  Our funds are still very limited so we are searching for other potential sources of money.  If you know of any, or would like to donate useful equipment or even cash, do please let us know.

2018 Planned Events

  1. Wild flower planting party– date to be confirmed 

We intend to plant swathes of wild flower seeds across the top end of the field.  This time the land will be prepared by removing the hard, weed-bound surface before sowing, to encourage the seeds to germinate and survive.  We will also try to organise more daffodil/bulb planting

 Publicity and Communication

If there is anyone who would like to get more involved and/ or join the Friends of Miss Whalley’s Field Committee, simply contact us via the above E mail.

 

 

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