Bartonsham Meadow Celebration

From this spring, Herefordshire Wildlife Trust (HWT) has taken on the management of Bartonsham Meadows. To celebrate the acquisition, they are holding an event on May Day. The event will include a ceremonial tree planting, a walk through the meadows, speeches and music. Stalls and information on how to get involved will be available throughout.

These much-loved historic floodplains have a key contribution to make to biodiversity, natural flood defences, carbon capture, better river quality and social cohesion. The meadows have been owned by the Church Commissioners for England since the 1850s and have previously been used for cattle grazing. With support from the Friends of Bartonsham Meadows (FoBM), HWT plan to restore the expanse of grassland, which is regularly inundated by the River Wye to wildflower meadows.

The FoBM is a grass-roots group supporting environmental and socially beneficial land-use practices at Bartonsham Farm, Hereford. Working with Herefordshire Wildlife Trust, they have fostered a dialogue with land-users and land-owners including city residents, land-managers, wildlife and heritage experts, the Church Commissioners, the Church, Herefordshire Council and other key stakeholders.