Parklife Winter 2021

Parklife December 2021 – February 2022

Find out about...

OUR FESTIVE PARK

JOHN CLARE COUNTRYSIDE VISION

Winter WHAT’S ON GUIDE

Front cover image credit - Rachel Stone

Ham Farm House, Ham Lane, Peterborough PE2 5UU E: visitor.services@neneparktrust.org.uk T: 01733 234193 www.nenepark.org.uk If you would like to be added to our mailing list or require this magazine in another format, please get in touch.

Park winter tasks

Welcome

Park Manager, Greg Higby gives an update on the Park Management tasks over winter.

The Park Management team will be busy working hard over the next few months completing a wide range of winter tasks.

You may have already seen the landscape improvement work on the Ferry Meadows car park entrance It’s been another busy few months across Nene Park. Our landscape beds. Shrubs have been pruned back to improve visitors have been enjoying the changing colours of the visibility and public safety. Any minor outstanding Health & Park as it moves into a new season, with chillier mornings Safety tasks that could not be completed in the summer due to and atmospheric mist over the lakes. Families have also been the bird nesting season and high number of visitors enjoying enjoying Fox Play, our new play area at Lakeside, which opened the Park will also be completed over winter. Most of the Health at the end of October. We are now feeling festive in the Park & Safety tasks are tree safety and woodland management with Christmas workshops going on at weekends in December related. and our Visitor Centre and Farm Shop packed with unique gifts

to the winter edition of Parklife!

and delicious festive treats to buy.

Looking ahead to 2022, we are excited about the start of our Heritage Lottery funded project Your Community Greenspace and the improvements it will bring to the Park. You can read more on about this on page 7 and don’t forget to take a look at our What’s On guide to find out about all the events happening over the next few months.

Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to tell us what you think of Parklife magazine. There is still time to complete our survey and we’d love to hear from you about what you like, don’t like or would like to see more of. Please let us know by completing our Parklife survey here: www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/XTST9J3 Look forward to welcoming you to the Park soon!

The Nene Park Trust team

Coppicing the hazel beds and tree thinning in the woodland tree belts in Lynch Wood and Bluebell Wood have started and will continue until March next year. Woodland improvement work is done for several possible reasons:

● To change the mixture of species in the woods by removing undesirable species. ● To improve forest health by removing diseased or dying trees.

● To remove trees in an area to improve visibility.

● To remove trees that have a Health & Safety risk to the general public.

Other tasks will be on-going repairs to Park infrastructure, roads, paths and benches.

#NeneParkArt

Sculpture spotlight

Each issue we ask a volunteer or staff member to talk about one of their favourite sculptures from the Peterborough Sculpture Collection. In this issue, we asked Elena, Admin Support Officer, to choose her favourite sculpture.

My favourite sculpture at Thorpe Meadows is the Cormorant by Elizabeth Cooke. It is instantly recognisable as a bird and sits proudly holding a fish in its beak. I’m impressed by the intricacy of the sculpture as the Artist has used recycled metal to represent the delicate feathers. The sculpture reminds me of many summers spent cycling around Thorpe Meadows enjoying peaceful bike rides and watching the birds flying over the rowing lake.

Have you seen this sculpture? Share a photo of your favourite sculpture #NeneParkArt or email louise.thirlwall@neneparktrust.org.uk You can find out more information about the Thorpe Meadows Sculpture Trail and the Peterborough Sculpture Collection on our website at www.nenepark.org.uk/peterborough-sculpture-collection 2

You can also find out about a new project to protect and develop the sculpture collection on page 7!

Wildlife watching!

Two unusual bird sightings were made back in October The Red-necked Grebe and Common Scoter.

The Red-necked Grebe is not a resident of the UK and it is rare to see them. According to the RSPB there are only 50 individuals to spot as they move here in winter from colder parts of Europe.

Common Scoters are sea ducks that are annual visitors to the Park singly or in small groups. However, they don’t usually stay for more than a day or two so you have to be quick to spot them.

orange and white. Bramblings are only winter visitors in the UK, arriving in the autumn from the upland birch forests on northern Scandinavia.

These and many other species of birds are also attracted to the feeding stations around the Ferry Meadows car park, so it is always worth spending a moment to stop and look at the feeders to see comings and goings.

This winter, keep your eyes peeled for visiting finches. The Chaffinch is a fairly common bird in the Park and their numbers are increased in autumn by migrant birds arriving to winter here. With them can be another finch the Brambling, the same size and shape as the Chaffinch but with a distinctive white rump and are lovely tortoiseshell colours, black, grey,

Buy Nene Park firewood

As winter arrives and our thoughts turn to sitting in front of a cosy fire or log burner, did you know that you can buy your firewood from the Park?

Our hardworking volunteer firewood group cuts, splits and stores firewood ready for customers to purchase.

All the money raised from firewood sales is reinvested back into the Volunteer Programme and enables us to purchase tools and equipment for volunteers to carry out park maintenance throughout Nene Park.

We can deliver a transporter load (two cubic meters) for £170 per load and £85 per half load. We will deliver free as long as you live within a fifteen-mile radius of Ferry Meadows. All logs are mixed species of hard woods that have been seasoned for at least one year.

To order a delivery of firewood please contact gary.mason@neneparktrust.org.uk

New year – new adventures

Cycling is a great way to stay fit and healthy and is of course a green way to travel!

Did you know that cycling around Gunwade, Overton and Lynch Lakes in Ferry Meadows takes about 30 minutes (3.3 miles) and cycling for 20 minutes can burn up to 100 calories?

New look and feel...

As you may have noticed, if you’ve picked up a paper copy, this issue of Parklife looks and feels a bit different from previous issues.

It has been printed on 100% recycled paper from a paper mill with the lowest CO2 emissions of all European paper mills and where no waste goes to landfill. We are very pleased to be moving to using this paper to help further reduce the Trust’s carbon footprint. Let us know what you think!

Flying the Green flag!

We were delighted to be awarded green flag status again this year for Ferry Meadows in October!

The Green flag is the international quality mark for parks and green spaces. The award means that Ferry Meadows has high standards of horticulture, safety and environmental management and is a place that supports people to live healthy lives.

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OUR

FESTIVE PARK

With Christmas just around the corner, it’s time to enter into the festive spirit at Nene Park! Discover our craft workshops, read about our fundraising stars and calendar, and explore the exciting and unique shopping opportunities at the Visitor Centre & Gift Shop and Lakeside Farm Shop in Ferry Meadows.

Spread some sparkle!

Spread some sparkle in the Park by decorating one of our stars made from recycled wood, to be placed on display outside the Visitor Centre in Ferry Meadows throughout the Christmas season.

How to get involved:  Purchase a star from the Visitor Centre for a suggested donation of £5  Decorate the star at home in any way you wish  Bring the star back to the Visitor Centre before the 22nd

December for it to be displayed for all to see and enjoy until 5th January.

Donations received from the stars go directly back to Nene Park Trust, supporting our work and making sure the Peterborough community has greenspaces to benefit from forever. We can’t wait to see how you decorate your stars! Visit our webpage to find out more: www.nenepark.org.uk/christmas-stars

#NeneParkSparkles This Christmas we are taking the time to reflect on and celebrate the past year with an online social media campaign throughout December - #NeneParkSparkles. We will be highlighting all the amazing things we have achieved because of the support we have received, whether through donations, grants, visitors or volunteering! Follow along on social media, and if you want to help make 2022 even better, you can make a donation through our appeal on our website, www.nenepark.org.uk/Appeal/nene-park-sparkles, or in person at the Visitor Centre.

Winter workshops

Festive craft workshops are taking place at weekends in the run up to Christmas.

From wreath making and glass decorations to jewellery making, quilling cards and willow weaving, there is something for everyone and a chance to try a new skill whilst creating bespoke gifts for your friends and family. More details on all our events and workshops can be found at www.nenepark.org.uk/events

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Festive food at the Farm Shop

Our Farm Shop is celebrating its first Christmas in the Park and is packed full of festive treats and goodies to discover.

Our artisan Christmas Hampers have been carefully curated from a range of high-quality products to help make Christmas extra special.

The perfect gift for a family member of friend, or just to enjoy at home over the Christmas period, there is a hamper to meet everyone’s tastes, needs and dietary requirements. Take a look in the Festive Hampers section of our online shop to find out more and order.

Discover our full Christmas range in-store at the Farm Shop, from locally sourced meat, deli and cheese items to an extensive range of wines, spirits, ciders, ales and mead from renowned suppliers found on our doorstep. Choose from a delicious range of festive biscuits, chocolates and other sweet treats, alongside seasonal fresh flowers and plants.

Lakeside Farm Shop is also proud to stock a selection of vegan and gluten-free festive substitutes in addition to our usual free-from range.

The Farm Shop is open 7 days a week, from 10am to 4pm and can be found next to Nene Outdoors at Lakeside in Ferry Meadows. All proceeds from purchases go towards the maintenance of the Park, and you can even benefit from a seasonal offer of an hour’s free parking when you spend £10 or more in-store.

Christmas gifts

Searching for that gift with a difference?

Look no further than the Visitor Centre & Gift Shop at Ferry Meadows!

There is a wide range of decorations, thoughtful gifts, homewares and souvenirs, as well as games, toys, books and treats for pets and wildlife.

For more sustainable gifts, you’ll find our eco-friendly health and beauty products, alongside a new range of plastic-free toys and Recycle Me craft kits. Pop in and have a browse.

Park to Plate lamb boxes

Orders have now closed on our first run of Park to Plate lamb boxes but this is an initiative we hope to bring back regularly throughout the year.

We will be selling small, medium and large lamb boxes, containing a range of cuts of lamb born and reared on land managed in a naturefriendly way, including the Nene Park estate. To find out more about the Park to Plate project and our Share Farming Partnership please visit www.nenepark.org.uk/park-to-plate

Nene Park fundraising calendar

Enjoy a year of beautiful landscapes, seasonal colours and local wildlife found at Nene Park.

Our 2022 fundraising calendar features all the wonderful winning entries from our monthly photography competitions and is available to purchase at the Visitor Centre & Gift Shop for just £8.99.

The profits raised from calendar sales will go straight back to maintaining and nurturing Nene Park.

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Fox Play Our new play area at Lakeside is now open!

After 18 weeks of construction, the contractors left the site at the end of September, making way for our Park Management team and volunteers to plant new trees and shrubs and giving time for the new turf to bed in. After the final safety checks were completed and the play area signed off it was finally ready for our visitors to use.

We held our official opening of Fox Play on Tuesday 26 October in lovely autumnal half term sunshine. Hundreds of families flocked to the new play area to try out the new equipment and Nene Park staff were on hand to talk to visitors, hand out specially designed activity booklets and Fox Play stickers and enjoy the sea of smiling faces.

Here is a list of the different pieces of play equipment: ● Two zip lines ● 2-person slide ● Tunnel ● Climbing tower with netting tunnel ● Climbing rock stack ● Six tyre swings ● Accessible upright swing ● Toddler swing ● Wheelchair accessible wobbly bridge ● Rope and balance beams ● 4-seater seesaw ● Bouncing buoys ● Forest fountains with pumps

Visiting children at the opening event were asked to rate each piece of play equipment as they moved around the play area and we received nearly 100 evaluation forms back with overwhelmingly positive feedback.

The favourite pieces of equipment were: ● The bouncing buoys ● The zip lines ● The slide The bouncing buoys proved so popular that they had to be removed for repair soon after opening but there will soon be more robust bouncing buoys in place!

The water features and fountains were also very well received. There are five different fountains, operated with two different pumps and different controls that children need to explore to work out how they operate. There was lots of team work going on as children worked together to get the fountains spinning and spraying. The water has now been turned off for the winter but will be back on again in the spring for more water fun.

Thank you again to our generous funders – FCC Communities Foundation and Viridor Credits Environmental Company who have made it possible for us to construct this exciting play area.

Drawing competition!

Both of our Fox Play competition winners came to the play area to see it completed and had photos taken with their pictures on display. The winning pictures will remain on display for the next few months.

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Aminah, aged 11

Thomas, aged 7

Your Community Greenspace Following our successful delivery stage funding application to the National Lottery Heritage Fund, we’ve been busy behind the scenes planning the rollout of the Your Community Greenspace project.

Our team have been developing some of the exciting new activities that will take place over the next five years including; Pop-Up Park events across the City; a school-in-residence programme; a plant nursery; music, culture and food events; guided and companion walks; and new volunteering opportunities across the Park. We have also recruited project staff and secured planning permission for Park improvements including works to improve the welcome area and toilet facilities at Ferry Meadows. Events and activities will start in Spring 2022 and you can keep up to date with the project via our website and by following @YourCommunityGS on Twitter.

Talking Art

We are excited to be starting a new project to promote and conserve the Peterborough Sculpture Collection.

Our new Collection Conversations project will allow us to carry out essential repairs to some of the artworks within Thorpe Meadows Sculpture Trail and around the City. During spring and summer 2022 visitors will be able to take part in creative events – a series of artist-led workshops and activities supporting visitors and community groups to get creative, explore and learn more about the sculptures, and take part in conversations that consider ideas about how the Sculpture Collection can be developed. We are very grateful to Arts Council England for their funding towards Collection Conversations.

Lakeside Activity Centre update We are moving ahead with our plans for the Lakeside Activity Centre following planning approval earlier in 2021.

We are now in a detailed design phase where feedback from the planning process is incorporated into the construction plans where possible. Further archaeological assessment works will shortly take place to help meet planning conditions, and we will be approaching contractors in the near future with an aim to start with relocation of the car park before building work can commence. Please keep an eye on our website and social media pages for an update on when work will start.

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s r e e t n u l Vo October saw the 10 year anniversary of the Volunteer Programme at Nene Park and in November we held a celebration with volunteers where they were invited to attend the showing of a new film about the volunteers along with a cuppa and a slice of cake.

It was a great chance for volunteers to get together and celebrate their success as a group. The film is now available for all to view on the Nene Park You Tube channel: www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwXcxp7meMo&t=2s

Here is a poem written by volunteer Roy Watts.

TEN YEARS OF VOLUNTEERS We are celebrating ten years, That Nene Park has had volunteers, What do they do?

Well let me tell you.

They plant, they weed, They sow wildflower seeds, They saw up logs, Then there is the hit squad, They do some conservation.

As well as conversation, They pick up visitor’s litter, Walking around keeps them fitter.

The trust has made a ten minute film, I have yet to see, Is everybody in it, Including me?

Covid kept the volunteers away, But like bad pennies they are back to stay.

Fundraising thank you!

Thank you to the following organisations who have donated to the Trust in recent months: John Lewis We were pleasantly surprised to receive £1,000 from John Lewis & Partners to support the work Nene Park Trust does to maintain greenspaces in Peterborough for everyone to benefit from. Partners at John Lewis voted on a local cause they wanted the money to go to so thank you!

Woodland Trust Thank you to the Woodland Trust for our free tree packs, containing 120 saplings which are being planted in the Park by volunteers.

Football Foundation We have been successful in receiving a defibrillator from the Football Foundation which will be fitted at Woodlands sports pitches for the benefit of all that use the grounds there.

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n o i s i v

e d i s y r t n u o C

John Clare

... t u o b a e r o m t u o d Fin

Nene Park Trust is a partner in this exciting project in our local rural area. Find out more about what John Clare Countryside Vision is doing and about how you can get involved.

The John Clare Countryside Vision seeks to put nature at the heart of our lives once again, as John Clare, the 19th Century poet, experienced growing up in Helpston. It aims to create safe and tranquil environments where both nature and wildlife can thrive, as well as be cherished and enjoyed by the communities that surround them. The Vision aims to double nature in the John Clare Countryside area over the 10-year project, paired with improving and expanding access to the countryside for the urban communities of Peterborough. It also aims to use a variety of arts to engage residents and communities to connect with the work John Clare produced, attempting to bring back the enthusiasm John Clare had for nature, and the inspiration to be gained from it.

The project team hosted by PECT are working closely with 18 Parish Councils in the John Clare Countryside area, bringing communities together to enhance the work of nature. The project is being delivered by a partnership with the Langdyke Countryside Trust, The Wildlife Trust, Peterborough City Council, Nene Park Trust, Sacrewell, John Clare Cottage, Natural England and more. Projects include, creating wildflower meadows in desolate patches of grass; planting trees and hedges across landscape fields; adding ponds to wetland areas; restoring rivers that were once imbedded within society and everyday life, and so much more. The Vision encourages everyone, familiar with the countryside or not, to take part and do their bit for nature by volunteering with the John Clare Countryside, helping to create the wonderful landscapes and scenes whilst improving habitats for wildlife and nature. These work parties will be available to attend every week, with a variety of tasks and locations.

The John Clare Countryside team are also cultivating a series of seasonal walks to not only show off the Breath-taking areas but to offer a form of self-care, helping to calm our stressful minds and ‘Walk the Winter Blues Away’ to help maintain and improve the wellbeing of ourselves and peers. The first walk will be held at Ferry Meadows on the Saturday 11th December as an introduction to the countryside, edging up to Castor and Ailsworth. The second walk is on Saturday the 16th of January 2022 in Helpston, showcasing the brilliant work of the John Clare Countryside Vision, Helpston Parish Council and the work of wonderful volunteers on the village’s fauna and flora. The seasonal walks series will not only be held during the winter months in which our wellbeing requires a little more care, but also carry on into the spring and summer seasons to showcase and educate on the visible and miraculous changes nature goes through from season to season.

Please contact Mike Horne at mike.horne@pect.org.uk to get involved and find out more about the great things the John Clare Countryside Vision is doing!

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! r a e y

a

What

2021 has been a year of innovation at Nene Outdoors. We started the year with the nation entering our third lockdown and Nene Outdoors once again closed.

However one thing the summer of 2020 taught us was how much people valued the opportunity to get outdoors during a pandemic and so we were not idle during this time, instead our team were busy making preparations to ensure that we were able to come back in 2021 with an even better offering then before!

One of the biggest innovations people will have noticed this year is our new online booking system for Pay and Play activities. In the past people have only been able to book our hire equipment in person at the Nene Outdoors reception on the day. This led to long queues on busy days (not great for social distancing!) and often disappointment when the most popular craft booked up early. Our new booking system allows all activities to be booked weeks in advance so that you can plan your visit to Ferry Meadows knowing that your chosen activity will be available at a time that suits you.

Having this system has also made it easier for us to offer our visitors a wider range of activities including archery and climbing tasters which have proved very popular throughout the summer.

Also new for 2021 was our electric boat Wyndham, which offers visitors an opportunity to cruise the lakes and river of Ferry Meadows without worrying about the impact they are having on the environment they have come to enjoy.

Another big change people will have noticed is our new camping offer. In 2020 we responded to a demand for staycation facilities by providing our first ever pop-up campsite, with the opportunity to book individual tent pitches. It was so popular that this year we extended the offer by making more dates available for tent pitches and with the addition of our bell tent village with ready pitched tents available to book from May to October.

So what is to come for 2022? Well, we will of course be continuing to offer our popular Pay and Play activities with new craft joining our fleet to make sure we continue to offer the very best experience possible.

The camping and bell tents will also be returning, with group bookings already being taken for 2022, and we will be increasing the variety of trips available on Wyndham with a great programme of wildlife watching trips and other special cruises throughout the year. You can also expect to see a wide range of RYA training courses available for those of you who are keen to further develop a hobby you may have started during lockdown.

None of us knows quite what the future will bring but one thing you can be sure of is that the team at Nene Outdoors will find a way to continue to offer safe, exciting activities for families, schools, groups, individuals, everyone! We look forward to welcoming you all back in 2022.

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Winter

DECEMBER

Events

Jewellery Making Workshop

Sat 4 Dec, 10am-12pm and 1-3pm Get ready for the Christmas season and make your own set of jewellery for yourself or as a gift, or just an excuse to try something new. During the class Suitable for: 12 yrs+ we will make a bracelet, necklace and earrings, using a variety of Meeting point: Discovery jewellery making techniques. All Den, Ferry Meadows materials are included to make these items.

Cost: £20 per person

Wild Home Educators

Suitable for: 5-10 yrs Meeting point: Outside the Discovery Den, Ferry Meadows Cost: £5.50 per child

Mon 13 Dec, 1.15-3.15pm We run outdoor learning sessions every month for home schooled children. Each session will have curriculum and nature focussed activities, with each month having a different theme.

Holiday Trail Sat 18 Dec – Mon 3 Jan, 10am-4pm

Complete a trail around Ferry Meadows and claim a prize at the end! Collect a trail sheet from the Sun 5 Dec, 1-3pm Visitor Centre and then hunt for Quilling is the art of rolled, shaped, Suitable for: All ages questions as you walk around Ferry and glued paper that results in Meadows. Return to the Visitor Meeting point: The Visitor creating a unified, decorative Centre to claim your prize. Available Centre, Ferry Meadows design. At the workshop, you will every day during the Christmas learn the techniques to create the Holidays from 10am - 4:00pm.

Cost: £1 per sheet design you are looking for.

Christmas Card Quilling Workshop

Suitable for: 10 yrs+

JANUARY

Meeting point: Discovery Den, Ferry Meadows

Social Walking Group

Cost: £12

Social Walking Group Mon 6 Dec and Wed 15 Dec, 10.30am-12pm

Suitable for: 14 yrs+ Meeting point: Outside the Visitor Centre, Ferry Meadows Cost: Free to attend but places must be booked.

Join our regular social walking group to keep fit, explore new areas of Nene Park and make new friends. Walks are led by a member of the Nene Park team and are approximately 5km (3 miles) in distance. Each month we will explore a different area of Nene Park.

Suitable for: 14 yrs+

Join our regular social walking group to keep fit, explore new areas of Nene Park and make new friends. Walks are led by a member of the Nene Park Team and are approximately 5 km (3 Cost: Free but places must miles) in distance. Each month we will explore a different area of Nene Park. be booked Meeting point: Outside the Visitor Centre, Ferry Meadows

Nature Tots Mon 10 Jan and Mon 24 Jan, 10-11.30am

Christmas Willow Weaving Workshop Sun 12 Dec, 10am-12pm and 1-3pm This is a beginner workshop to introduce you to the wonderful world of willow. Join Martin from Rutland Willows as he takes you Suitable for: 16 yrs+ through the techniques you need to create three unique pieces of Meeting point: Discovery work. You will make three small Den, Ferry Meadows items from star, angel, small reindeer and a wreath ring.

Cost: £20

Suitable for: 2 yrs+ with their carers Meeting point: Outside the Discovery Den, Ferry Meadows

Meeting point: Outside the Discovery Den, Ferry Meadows

Wild Home Educators Mon 10 Jan and Mon 24 Jan, 1.15-3.15pm

Cost: £3.50 per child

Mon 13 Dec, 10-11.30am A fun monthly outdoor parent and toddler group with a nature theme. Each session will include a messy craft activity and activities exploring the beautiful outdoors, with a different theme each month.

A fun monthly outdoor parent and toddler group with a nature theme.

Each session will include a messy craft activity and activities exploring the beautiful outdoors. Sessions run on the second and fourth Monday of the month, with a different theme each month.

Cost: £3.50 per child

Nature Tots Suitable for: 2 yrs+ with their carers

Tue 4 Jan and Wed 26 Jan, 12-3pm

Suitable for: 5-10 yrs Meeting point: Outside the Discovery Den, Ferry Meadows

We run outdoor learning sessions every month for home schooled children.

Each session will have curriculum and nature focussed activities, with each month having a different theme.

Cost: £5.50 per child 1111

FEBRUARY

Bushcraft Skills: Fire Lighting Wed 16 Feb, 10.30am-12pm and 1.30-3pm

Holiday Trail Suitable for: All ages

Sat 12 Feb – Sun 20 Feb, 10am-4pm

Meeting point: The Visitor Collect a trail sheet from the Visitor Centre this half term and then Centre, Ferry Meadows hunt for the questions as you walk Cost: £1 around Ferry Meadows. Find all of the answers and return to the Visitor Centre to claim your prize.

Pay and Play Watersports Suitable for: All ages

Sat 12 Feb – Sun 20 Feb, 11am-4pm

Meeting point: Nene Outdoors, Ferry Meadows

Choose from a pedalo, rowing boat, kayak, canoe, stand up paddleboard or a sailing dinghy. You can also hire a bike to explore the wider Park.

Cost: Varies

Nature Tots Mon 14 Feb and Mon 28 Feb 10-11.30am

Suitable for: 2 yrs+ with their carers Meeting point: Outside the Discovery Den, Ferry Meadows

A fun monthly outdoor parent and toddler group with a nature theme. Each session will include a messy craft activity and activities exploring the beautiful outdoors.

Sessions run on the second and fourth Monday of the month, with a different theme each month.

Suitable for: 7 yrs+ Meeting point: Lakeside car park on the grass by the pay machines Cost: £5.50 per child

Climbing Wall Suitable for: Adults or children 4 yrs+

The team from Nene Outdoors will be getting our climbing wall out during the school holidays for all visitors to have a go. We will be outside Nene Outdoors. Are you Cost: £9. Booking essential. brave enough to reach the top?

SPRING DIARY DATES Nene Outdoors reopens for Pay and Play watersports from Tueday 1 March Guided Walk with a Ranger Suitable for: 8 yrs+

Tue 15 March, 10am-1.30pm

Meeting point: Outside the Visitor Centre

Join Ian Lowe for a 6 mile guided walk around Ferry Meadows and surrounding areas.

Dragonfly Glassmaking Workshop Sat 19 Mar, 10am-12pm and 1-3pm

Wild Home Educators Mon 14 Feb and Mon 28 Feb, 1.15-3.15pm

Meeting point: Outside the Discovery Den, Ferry Meadows

We run outdoor learning sessions every month for home schooled children. Each session will have curriculum and nature focussed activities, with each month having a different theme.

Meeting point: Discovery Den, Ferry Meadows Cost: £25

Sat 2 Apr– Mon 18 Apr

Archery Taster

Keep your eye on our website events pages for our Easter events.

Tue 15 Feb, 11am-3pm

Pay and Play Archery sessions will run Meeting point: Oak throughout the day. Why Meadow, Ferry Meadows not come down and have Cost: £9. Booking essential. a go?

Events information  All events can be booked online using our booking system: www.nenepark.org.uk/events Unless stated, all events must be booked in advance, some of which have multiple time slots.

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Suitable for: 16 yrs+

If you’ve already attended a beginner workshop, expand your skills and make a beautiful dragonfly. In this workshop June Massey will teach you techniques to cut your own glass and use a mould to create the shape you are looking for.

Easter Holiday Activities

Cost: £5.50 per child

Suitable for: Adults and children 8 yrs+

Thur 17 Feb, 11am-3pm

Meeting point: Outside Nene Outdoors, Ferry Meadows

Cost: £2.50

Cost: £3.50 per child

Suitable for: 5-11 yrs

Participants will learn about different bushcraft techniques for lighting a fire without matches and will get to have a go at lighting a fire themselves.

Celebration Festival Sat 14 and Sun 15 May A city-wide celebration to thank key workers and to bring our communities together. Keep your eye on our website events pages for more details.  Many of our events are either free or on a cost recovery basis. If you enjoyed an event and would like to donate towards the £50,000 spent annually on delivering these events, the suggested donation is £2. Thank you.

Accessibility

 Event details are correct here at the time of going to press. Please check the website for up to date information.

 We offer a range of services at events such as hearing assistance equipment, accessible maps, mobility scooters and assistance dogs are welcome.

 If you book onto an event and are unable to come, let us know.

 If you have any special requirements or queries, please get in touch or visit the accessibility page on our website.

 Children under the age of 18 must be accompanied by an adult, up to a maximum of three children per adult.

 Please call us to find out more information about the accessibility of individual events.