2024: a reflection from our Chair
As a local community based group (and registered charity), over the past year, we've continued to focus our efforts on our 3 greatest strengths; Big Bike Fix, local nature improvements and education.
The Big Bike Fix reached another milestone during the year of refurbishing over 800 bikes, thank you so much to our team of fixers, it is truly inspiring what you are doing for our community, in repurposing possible waste. We are moving to our next exciting phase of securing further grant funding and new management to push to our 1000th bike milestone. If you wish to help in any way, please read more here.
Locally, within our communities, you will also have seen the many improvements to our natural environment all our volunteers continue to make, including; new educational signage and natural hedge creation around Churchfields, path clearance and improvements along the riverside, wild flower meadows in Wetherby, orchard pruning in Deepdale and many more trees planted (to help with biodiversity, slowing rainwater runoff to prevent flooding and reduce heat islands). Thank you so much, people in our communities are noticing the hard work.
We also continue to work with local schools, successfully helping Lady Hastings Primary School achieve their first Eco Schools Green Flag award last autumn, congratulations!
We will continue to assist within the STEM Learning; Climate Ambassadors Scheme framework, which requires all educational settings to have a Sustainability Lead and a Climate Action Plan in place by the end of 2025.
We've continued to engage our broader communities in new and exciting ways, with a nature walk in the summer, a citizen science moth trapping and count exercise, an autumnal evening bat walk and an exclusive showing of Wilding the movie - all well attended.
We have many more such events planned for this coming year, so please subscribe to our newsletter, so you don't miss out.
If you are unable to give your time, then we do continue to need funds to be able to purchase;
- trees,
- tools,
- bike parts and more,
Don't forget, we have a huge amount of information on our website, so if you want to know more about energy saving, solar panels, batteries, heat pumps, cycling and recycling, please make yourself a brew, grab a biscuit and have a root around!
Finally, if you wish to hear more about our activities and future events, please subscribe to our newsletter on our News page via our home page.
Be a force for good in 2025.
If you wish to learn more about the Community Group and its activities, please get in touch.
Adrian
adrian.balcombe@bostongreengroup.co.uk
