Over the past 4 years the Mick George Community Fund have been fantastic benefactors to the Park, and this continues with not one but two grants approved by them towards the end of 2020.

Firstly, they are assisting our recreation provision at Woodlands in Castor with contributions towards the purchase of a state-of-the-art electric cylinder mower for pitch maintenance, as well as a set of movable competition-size goal posts.

The environmentally friendly electric mower will be used to keep the pitches maintained for cricket and football use, as well as maintaining the new wildflower areas. These pitches are an essential resource for the local sporting community, providing a high quality playing surface, and are regularly used by over 3,000 players each year. 

The mower has already been received and used to maintain the cricket square over the autumn and winter months, with the goal posts due to arrive in the spring and put into full use once football can safely return.

The fund is also providing support for our conservation work through funding materials for a new tern raft as well as new bird and bat boxes and wildflower seeds.

The new tern-raft has already been constructed by our ranger team and will be launched in March, offering common terns and other seabirds a comfortable location to rest and feed, whilst providing keen birdwatchers and wildlife-lovers greater opportunities to see these wonderful birds.

The new bird boxes have been installed around the margins of the sports pitches at Woodlands, with the bat boxes being added in January to benefit the local wildlife there. This will also be further enhanced by strategically-placed wildflower strips and a bug hotel. 

This essential conservation work continues to improve the biodiversity of the Park, which has already seen us create new lowland flood-meadows at Ferry Meadows, also with help from Mick George.