Young carers awarded for their wildlife work at National Waterways Museum
The Ellesmere Port St John Ambulance Young Carers is to be presented with a Silver Award from Cheshire Wildlife Trust’s Wildlife Friendly Garden Award scheme at the National Waterways Museum at Ellesmere Port 11am this Saturday 15 August. The award is for the work the group has done to improve the Museum’s gardens and wildlife habitats.
The St John Ambulance Young Carers group is made up of six children aged between nine and 11 years. They come from Helsby, Chester and Ellesmere Port and are all helping to look after either a parent or sibling with health problems. They started their gardening project at the National Waterways Museum in April and work there every Saturday for two hours. The work they have undertaken includes: clearing the Museum’s Porters Row cottage garden beds and planting them with vegetables and flowering plants; planting tubs around the Museum site and making two ‘bug hotels’ to attract insects, boosting the species available at the bottom of the food chain. Yvonne Keeping, volunteer for the St John Ambulance Young Carers, explains: “We wanted the children to get involved in a project which would be mainly outside and would help them enjoy some healthy living, so gardening seemed a great option. The National Waterways Museum is in a lovely waterside setting with lots of open space and garden area. “We’ve enjoyed working with the Museum staff and volunteers and the children have loved learning about gardening, wildlife, healthy eating and boats! They’ve also been able to take home some of the produce they’ve grown including lettuce, carrots, beans and they are hoping to include a recipe inspired by their crops in this year’s Young Carers recipe book. “They are delighted to have won the Silver Award in this year’s Cheshire Wildlife Trust’s Wildlife Friendly Garden Awards and they are determined to go for gold next year!” Sue James, volunteer at National Waterways Museum, adds: “This is a fantastic project and we are really proud of the Young Carers and what they have achieved. With our waterside setting, the Museum already attracted a variety of wildlife including moorhens, coots, ducks and swans. But now that our gardens have been improved and the bug hotels installed, we hope to see more insects, bees and butterflies too. “It really is a fantastic project for all – the children enjoy time outside planting and growing plants, flowers and vegetables and they also get a chance to learn about the working boats and history of their local waterways. And visitors, staff and volunteers at the museum have enjoyed the lovely new flower beds and seeing the progress of the vegetable patch too!” The National Waterways Museum at Ellesmere Port is home to the national collection of 80 historic working boats, some of which visitors can board to explore and find out how the working boat people used to live. The Museum also has a trip boat, hands-on exhibits, a soft play area, films, touch-screen displays, stables, a blacksmith, docks, pump houses, workers cottages and gardens, an archive, Museum shop and cafe. For more information call 0151 373 4378 or visit www.nwm.org.uk/ellesmere. Cheshire Wildlife Trust’s Wildlife Friendly Garden Award Scheme encourages garden owners to introduce simple features to make a difference for wildlife because gardens – no matter how small – can provide vital havens for native creatures. Alan Titchmarsh, the renowned gardener and television presenter, has lent his support to the scheme, saying: “From an expansive country garden to a compact urban plot, our gardens are truly brought to life by the wildlife that visits them, and just a few simple plants and features can provide a vital haven for our native creatures. “This scheme rewards all those gardeners who make room for wildlife, native plant species and use products that benefit the natural environment, so it’s a great opportunity to put the ‘green’ into ‘green fingers’ and get out and do your bit!” For tips on how to make your garden more wildlife friendly please send a regular stamped A5 SAE requesting the free ‘Wildlife Friendly Garden Awards leaflet’ to Cheshire Wildlife Trust, Bickley Hall Farm, Bickley Nr Malpas, Cheshire, SY14 8EF.
ENDS
For details about Saturday’s award ceremony call Sue James on 0777 5774605.
For further press information contact: Debbie Walker, Communications Manager,
The Waterways Trust T 0774386 40577 email: debbie.walker@thewaterwaystrust.org.uk Notes for Editors: 1. The Waterways Trust is a national charity which works in partnership with individuals, communities and organisations to conserve, restore, improve and interpret all aspects of the UK’s inland waterways. www.thewaterwaystrust.org.uk 2. The National Waterways Museum at Ellesmere Port, Gloucester Docks and Stoke Bruerne house the designated inland waterways collection, which together with the Waterways Archive brings to life the fascinating story of our waterways. www.nwm.org.uk 3. The Museum is on South Pier Road, Ellesmere Port, Cheshire CH65 4FW. Follow the brown signs from the M53 Junction. There is free parking there. It’s a 15 minute drive from Chester, 25 from Manchester and 45 from Liverpool. The Museum is a ten minute walk from Ellesmere Port train station and 20 minutes from the bus station. 4. Cheshire Wildlife Trust is a charity that works to protect and enhance wildlife in the Cheshire region. As part of its role to safeguard our fragile natural heritage, it manages 45 nature reserves, which help to protect endangered species, rare plants, and threatened habitats. It is all about people taking action for wildlife at a local level.
5. Further information and application forms for the Wildlife Friendly Gardening Awards are available from www.cheshirewildlifetrust.co.uk , call 01948 820728 or email wildlifegardening@cheshirewt.cix.co.uk 6. For more press information about the Wildlife Friendly Garden Awards Scheme call Karen Taylor on 01948 820728 or visit www.cheshirewildlifetrust.co.uk
7. The Museum’s Porter’s Row Cottage Gardens were originally part of a row of 12 cottages built in 1833 as homes for shipwrights, blacksmiths, railway workers, porters and their families. Today the remaining four cottages are part of the Museum’s exhibits, recreating homes from the 1840s, 1900s, 1930s and 1950s,each with the decor and features of its time, from oil lamps to electric light and from coal-fired coppers to early hand-operated washing machines.
|
