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3 August 2009
Family Fun and Discovery Day at Priory Country Park
Over 600 people joined the Wildlife Trust last Saturday for a really wild day out at Priory Country Park in Bedford.
The Family Fun and Discovery Day offered local people a great way to find out more about local wildlife and join in with lots of interesting activities. More than 80 children went mini beast hunting through the Country Park with Wildlife Trust staff.
There were a range of activities on offer including dragonfly making, a wildlife gardening stall with advice from our expert Nancy, owl pellet dissection, mask making, wool spinning, countryside craft demonstrations, information on bee-keeping and local archaeology.
Wildlife Trust staff were on hand to give members of the public advice on local wildlife, recycling, information on the geological environment, and the importance of grazing and conservation.
Visitors were also invited to get creative and be part of a community 'Big Art' project – led by local artist Abby Simpson. The art work was a lot of fun, but also provided a thought provoking and action inspiring activity for children as they were required to pledge how they would help wildlife and the environment in the future. This will be displayed at Priory Country Park visitor centre and will act as an ongoing reminder of the fun and importance of protecting local wildlife.
Ruth Brockett, Education and Community Officer at the Wildlife Trust, said: “It has been such a great day. Everyone had loads of fun. We had families joining in with all sorts of wild and fun activities, discovering more about local wildlife and Priory Country Park. It provided a good example of how much fun it is to get outside and close to nature."
Visitors were particularly interested to learn about the work the Wildlife Trust does in helping local wildlife. Several visitors were so inspired they pledged their support by joining the Trust as members. Many of the children found out about the Wildlife Watch groups and some adults joined the Flit Vale and Bedford Local Groups.
Local band – Hair of the Dog – did a fantastic job of entertaining visitors with their celtic folk music throughout the day.