Hello there!
We’re teaming up with Arnos Vale Cemetery to deliver 2 training sessions on Oral History! Are you interested in local stories? personal histories? Green space and digital media? This is your chance to get involved and help shape an exciting project and exhibition!
The trainings are both the same so you only need to do one (10th March or 24th march 10:30am 0 4:30pm). See more info below and contact Rowan if you’d like to book a place!
After a winter walk in the rubbish strewn valley I decided it’s time for a clear-up! Come along on the 25th and lend a hand in St Anne’s Wood. See poster below for more details.
After an unexpected wait I’m proud to announce the unveiling of “Discover Brislington Brook” the movie! Thanks to some wonderful students at the University of Bristol and some excellent interviews by the people of Brislington, here it is…Enjoy!
Lovely licheny sign at the entrance to Nightingale Valley!
Today I visited the site with an amazing man called Justin from Bristol City Council (yes there are some) who works in habitat management. He gave me a whirlwind tour of the valley from a fungi, lichen and moss’s point of view. Well to be more precise we were actually identifying work that community groups can get involved in (such as copicing and bramble bashing) and the mossy friends were just an added bonus.
This sign is an incredible habitat; Jason managed to identify 20 different types of lichen and moss which have colonised it. The sign acts as a surface for the misty air which enters the valley to condense on making it a perfect home for these wonderful organisms. A symbiotic relationship between a fungi an algae and an old park sign. Incredible.
If you’re interested in volunteering to do conservation work have a look at the role description and fill out an application form on the volunteering page http://discoverbrislingtonbrook.wordpress.com/volunteering/ we will be running a range of activities such as invasive weed pulls and litter picks over the Spring/Summer and starting heavier conservation work in the Autumn.
Happy New Year!
I hope you’ve all had a wonderful festive season and are looking forward to the year ahead. The Discover Brislington Brook project is gearing up for an action packed Spring and Summer with plenty of events, walks, volunteering opportunities and activities for people of all ages…The New Year’s Calendar will be winging it’s way to you shortly as soon as I’ve done the last few finishing touches: IN THE MEANWHILE…
…An exciting opportunity for you to get your historical teeth stuck in to (see info below). Please email rowan.matthiessen@bristol.gov.uk or call me if you’d like to book a place and feel free to spread the word amongst your networks.
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Know Your Place workshops
Thursday 19th Jan 4 – 5:30pm AND Thursday 26th Jan 6 – 7:30pm @ Brislington Enterprise College
Do you have any old images of South East Bristol or new images of historical points of interest in the area?
Want to learn how you can archive them for the whole community to use?
Come along to one of these interactive sessions at Brislington Enterprise College and Learn how to:
- scan in and upload photos
- upload images to the Know Your Place website
- access historical information and images from across Bristol
Meet at Visitor’s Reception – Brislington Enterprise College, Hungerford Road, Brislington, Bristol, BS4 5EY
What an amazing launch for the Discover Brislington Brook Project.
Wednesday’s bat funday and evening story walk was an absolutely awesome success thanks to the hard work of lots of brilliant volunteers. Over 200 people attended the event (many of them under the age of 10!). The feedback from the community was tremendous so I think I’ll just let the people of Brislington do the explaining for me!
“Lovely, Brilliant”, “Kids really enjoyed it (and adults too:)”, “It would be good to have more events like this in the community”, “Bat-tastic”, “Excellent fun!”, “So much to do”, “We enjoyed the apple pressing most of all”, “Lovely music and crafts”, “More cakes please”
And here’s some photgraphic evidence:
Have you ever wondered how old the oldest bat in England is? How many species of bat there are in the UK? How many thousands of insects a bat can eat in a single night? Well, luckily for you it’s not long now until the much anticipated Launch event at the Wicklea Centre “Brislington’s Gone Batty” (for those who don’t have it in your diary it’s next Wednesday 2 -6:30pm)
I’ve been getting excited about decorating the hall halloween stylee – after agonising about whether to buy a whole load of ugly rubber bats I discovered Origami! Check this out!
In the UK, we are lucky enough to have 17 species of breeding bats - almost a quarter of our mammal species! Bats need shelter, a good water supply and a constant supply of insects to survive, which is why the woods around Brislington Brook are an ideal location for them. Bats are a vital part of our native wildlife and are protected by law; populations have suffered severe declines during the past century and need all the help they can get.
Activities include bat hat, puppet and lantern making, apple pressing, face painting and outdoor games; you’ll also be able to get practical and make a bat box at a hands-on drop-in workshop sponsored by White Design. The Community café will be serving teas, coffees and cakes so bring yourselves, your children, your grandchildren and if you’ve got any apples bring them along too! The evening walk will leave Wicklea at 5:15pm returning around 6:30pm – wrap up warm, wear strong shoes and bring torches if you have them.
