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10 November 2006
Local children celebrate magical woodland
And create wonderful woodland artwork at Gamlingay Wood
In October, the Wildlife Trust joined forces with local artists and Cambridgeshire schools to celebrate the beauty of ancient woodland as part of the national 'Big Draw'.
Inspired by the magic of Gamlingay Wood, children produced artwork both in the wood and at school. This artwork was brought together in spectacular large panels by artist Margaret Setchell. The completed work was displayed for the first time at Gamlingay Wood nature reserve, on Sunday 15 October as part of a Woodland Art Big Draw Event. Over 100 visitors from the local community attended, including families and friends of the children involved. They had the opportunity to explore Gamlingay wood for themselves, taking part in the art and crafts activities.
At the end of October the Wildlife Trust's community officers took the artwork into a school assembly at the Vine Inter-Church Primary School, Cambourne, one of the three schools involved. All the children had chance to see the completed work and to identify their individual contributions to it. Nick Hammond, director of the local Wildlife Trust was present and said, ‘the art project is an exciting way of engaging children in their fantastic local environment’.
Over the next few months, the large artwork panels will be displayed in local libraries, the schools involved in the project and the Wildlife Trust Office at Cambourne, over the next few months.
Gamlingay Wood is over a thousand years old, and the character and diversity of wonderful wildlife here reflects its rich history. It has always been important to the local community and a valuable source of building materials and firewood. The Wildlife Trust’s Woodland Linkage Project is striving to link Gamlingay Wood to Waresley and Gransden Woods. This is the first phase of the plan for a South Cambridgeshire Forest for wildlife and people, bringing more magical woodland back to Cambridgeshire. The Woodland Linkage Project has the support of the Heritage Lottery Fund, English Nature, the Forestry Commission, WREN, RMC Environment Fund and many local donors.