The Path to a New Visitors’ Centre in Devonshire Road Nature Reserve

Those of you who know the Devonshire Road Nature Reserve will have seen the site develop over the last decade and a half from a run-down, underused bramble patch to the vibrant, lively place it is today. A host of projects from digging ponds to building permanent garden shelters and paths have transformed the place and the Friends of Devonshire Road Nature Reserve have become experienced at delivering projects and events to involve the whole community.

We now want to tackle the big one; we want to replace the crumbling, 40 year old pre-fab classroom that serves as a visitor centre with a purpose built, ecologically designed flagship building. More than that, we want to involve volunteers from the community to deliver the building, as we have with all the other infrastructure projects.

A good deal of preparatory work has been done over the last few years; we’ve attended courses on community building and consultation, got to grips with funding applications, learnt green-oak carpentry skills, installed a living roof, dug and cast foundations and spent countless hours dreaming and discussing the project. What we need now is fund-raisers, architects, craftsmen and willing volunteers to get involved with all stages of the project, people who have that feeling that they have something to contribute but lack an outlet for their energy.

If you are interested and feel you can contribute, please contact Jacob Twyford at jake at fhsoc.com for more details.

Article by Jake Twyford