Barker Gotelee goes wild for the Greenways Countryside Project


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A group of keen Barker Gotelee volunteers took a morning out of the office last week to support local initiative, the Greenways Countryside Project.

The Greenways Countryside Project exists to protect and enhance the countryside, landscape and open space in and around the town of Ipswich, for the benefit of wildlife and local people. The project relies on volunteers to complete much of its practical conservation work and every Thursday a small group meets at Martlesham Common to work on the heath and surrounding woodland, carrying out tasks which enhance the local surroundings and allow wildlife a home in which to flourish.

Last week saw ten members of the Barker Gotelee team join the project for half a day, working in the wooded area at the northern edge of the common. Following a brief introduction from one of the project leaders, the team was shown how to work safely and effectively with small hand tools to build ‘dead hedges’: clearing and cutting sections of felled elm trees and arranging the pieces into a hedge formation. The ‘dead hedges’ serve a dual purpose of forming a natural enclosure for footpaths while also creating precious habitat for a wide variety of wildlife. Whilst a little cold at first, the day was sunny and clear the volunteers soon warmed up, thanks in part to the exercise and also to the coffee and biscuits kindly provided by the Greenways team!

All those who took part agreed that the morning’s work had been highly enjoyable and rewarding, and were happy with the progress made in just a few hours. Andrew Nicholson, Partner at Barker Gotelee, who also took part said, “As a firm we were very grateful to be given the opportunity to help Greenways with their valuable work. It was particularly gratifying to be involved in a project which is only a stone’s throw away from our offices and we look forward to continuing to support them on a regular basis.”

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For more information about Greenways Countryside Project click here

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