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Saintbridge
Pond began life as an engineering feature in 1971. It was created
as a defence against flooding, which has been a persistent problem
in the area since the construction of new housing in Abbeydale and
Abbeymead.
For
many years, it was an undervalued feature of Gloucester. Vandalism,
fly-tipping and antisocial behaviour had turned the pond and the
surrounding space into a major eyesore.
Positive
action
Things
began to change in the spring of 1993 with the formation of the
Friends of Saintbridge Pond - a group of local residents who decided
to do something positive to transform the space.
In
the beginning, the challenge was to pick up rubbish and clean the
silt traps. That in itself was a big job because the area was the
size of a football pitch!
Fortunately
Gloucester City Council stepped in to provide some assistance in
the form of a skip to remove larger volumes of refuse. The Council
has also helped the project by donating trees, hedging and bulbs
as well as assigning a liaison officer.
However,
it is the twenty strong team of volunteers that form the Friends
of Saintbridge Pond who do all of the work for the benefit of local
people and wildlife.
Saintbridge
Pond transformed
Thanks
to the perseverance of the group, the space has now been completely
transformed from an unusable space to a lush nature reserve that
attracts both visitors and wildlife to the area.
It's
a popular place for the wildlife - there are many ducks, coots,
moorhens and swans who have made their home on the pond, and many
more birds who use it as a staging post on their journey.
It
hasn't been an easy task to transform the space but it's fine example
of what can be achieved through positive action. In the end, the
Friends of Saintbridge Pond managed to create their own little bit
of paradise in Gloucester.
Transform
a derelict space near you!
Gloucester
has recently been selected as one of three areas in the United Kingdom
to take part in the 'It's Your Space' campaign.
It
aims to encourage the people of Gloucester to get involved in the
improvement of open spaces in their local community and put them
in touch with organisations that can help them transform those ugly
spaces into welcoming, well-used community spaces like Saintbridge
Pond.
Individuals
and organisations interested in finding out how they can become
more involved in their local area should log on to the website, where they will find local information on
everything from becoming a friend of a park to adopting a piece
of waste ground and starting your own project.
Local
newspaper The Citizen is also supporting the campaign and is appealing
for people to identify derelict or wasted spaces the Gloucester,
Stroud and Forest of Dean areas. If you know of one, !
The
ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ is not responsible for the content of external websites.
If you
would like to comment on this story get in touch at gloucestershire@bbc.co.uk
or have your say on our |
An
eyesore dumping ground in Gloucester has been miraculously transformed
into a beautiful nature reserve thanks to the efforts of a local community
group.
