• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

TCV London

A blog by The Conservation Volunteers in London

TCV London blog

  • Home
  • TCV London website
You are here: Home / Uncategorized / The Bridge over Muddy Waters…..

The Bridge over Muddy Waters…..

January 28, 2015 by London Green Gym Leave a Comment

Pevensey Road Green Gym volunteers undertook a challenge and a half when local group Friends of the River Crane Environment  (FORCE) asked them to build a bridge. Pevensey Road is a beautiful site, one side meadows and the other pockets of woodland and wetland with the River Crane running through it. Pevensey Road has its own secret, hidden charms.

bridge beforeOur Green Gym volunteers have been working over the last 6 months to push back the scrub on the nature reserve, to open up the ponds and pathways.  Improving access for local residents and removing invasive vegetation. The ponds have been planted up with additional marginal plants, but some of the channels have started to vanish into mud.

In 2011, the River Crane in West London was hit by a devastating pollution incident which contaminated the entire seven mile stretch of the river killing its inhabitants.  Channels and ponds were created at Pevensey Road LNR to provide a safe place for fish, if something like this were to happen again.  On the path through the woodland there was no way to cross the main channel, so it was blocked with logs so people could cross.  FORCE and TCV were keen to give local residents a safer path across the channel and to open the channel to the ponds so fish can easily pass into them from the river.

drillingThe challenge now was how to build a footbridge across a narrow channel. The start wasn’t promising, with the rain covering every surface, tool and volunteer in mud, and that tree stump blocking the way (top picture)!  Tom Nandi from BAT north helped us plan the bridge, and then volunteers got stuck in, working out what to do and how to do it together.

Over the course of 4 sessions our Green Gym volunteers pondered how to dig holes in mud (without sinking), built the bridge in sections, and cut back the surrounding vegetation to clear the path for dog walkers.

finished!

 

From humble beginnings to an amazing end result, we’re really proud!

 

 

 

This project has already given volunteers a chance to try out their new found conservation skills, have a go at building something for the first time, and make a huge difference in the reserve. A great achievement.

Bridge group for email

 

FullSizeRender

We’re so proud, we’ve even laminated Dave’s bridge building drawings for posterity!

 

 

 

And then a well deserved celebration!

chritstmas! (2)

 

 

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Recent blog posts

  • Digging into Cassiobury Park’s history with Green Gym Volunteers
  • TCV Employee Action Days with Camelot Watford!
  • A Year (and a bit) – TCV Green Gym in Cassbiobury Park, Watford, Celebrates!
  • Bromley GG: Transforming the College Green & Slip
  • The Bridge over Muddy Waters…..
  • The Camden Green Gym – 6 Years
  • Adding New Colour to an Oasis – Part 2
  • Adding New Colour to an Oasis – Part 1
  • Reclaiming Ingestre Woods
  • Hello from London!

Archives

  • February 2016 (1)
  • November 2015 (1)
  • September 2015 (1)
  • May 2015 (1)
  • January 2015 (2)
  • April 2013 (1)
  • March 2013 (1)
  • February 2013 (1)
  • January 2013 (1)

Our main website

  • Head over to www.tcv.org.uk

Our blogs network

  • Read all our latest posts at blogs.tcv.org.uk

All our blogs

  • TCV Bedfordshire
  • Community Learning in Partnership
  • Health & Wellbeing
  • Health for Life
  • Natural Communities
  • Natural Networks
  • Natural Talent
  • Skelton Grange Environment Centre
  • TCV London
  • TCV Scotland
  • TCV Tree Nursery Volunteers
  • Tree Life Centre

© Copyright 2021 The Conservation Volunteers

Registered in England as a limited company (976410)
and as a charity in England (261009) and Scotland (SCO39302)

Registered Office: Sedum House, Mallard Way, Doncaster DN4 8DB

Website by Made in Trenbania

  • TCV
  • Find TCV
  • Contact TCV
  • Careers
  • Handbooks
  • Privacy
  • Terms