Nature & History on a lovely short local walk

A Walk Around Meriden Shafts

Inadditiontoopenlandscap esand woodland, thereisintriguing Second World War historyto be discoveredonthisroute Somesectionsgetmuddy, so waterproof bootsarerecommended Dogsneed to beonleads, assheep are keptinseveralfields. Start bythe Severn Trent watertreatment workson Showell Laneand h eadnorth-eastalongthe wide bridleway. From h igh intheskyo ntherightofthe boundary hedgelistenoutfortheliquid warblingsongofskylarks. I wasluckylastsummerandgota photoofone perchedonafence post. Asthe path startstodescendandyou passthe beltof woodland ontheleft, thereisusuallyatreecreeperornuthatch inspectingtreetrunksforinsectfood

Wherethe path divides, taketherightfork. Thereisnow agradualclimbbeforetheroutedropsdownh ill again. Ravens visitthisarea, butareextremelyshy birds. A loudnasal “Kronk!” willalertyouiftheyare around. Theirnestsiteisseveralmilesawayatthetop ofanancient pinetree. Atthe bottomofthe slope, turnsharp rightfollow ingthe bridleway (Thereisafootpathwhich goesstraightahead, butthis misses the bestfeatureonthe walk.) The b ridlewaythentakesaturntotheleft, followed by quiteastiff incline with dense boundary hedges

Ontheright handside, look outforasinglestoreygreyconcrete building. Thisisthecontrol bunkerfora Second W orld War bombingdecoysite. It was builtas partofthe 'C-series' ofcivildecoystodeflect enemy bombingfrom Birmingham. It alsolaterservedasacivildecoyforCoventry. Thesitefunctioned as both a 'QF' and 'QL' decoy Th e 'QF' decoyconsistedofaseriesofcontrolledfireslitduringanairraid toreplicateatargetstruck by bombs. Th e 'QL' decoydisplayedsimulatedfactorylightingandtram flashestoreplicatetheoutereastareaof Birmingham It wasinuse between 1941 and 1943.Bythe 1960sthesite hadreturnedtoagriculturaluseandnofeaturesofthedecoysurviveexceptforthis concrete bunker

Now carryondownhillto join Harvest Hill Lane

Anovergrownfarm pond b ythe junctionisan idealspotto watch dragonflies huntingabovethe waterforsmallerinsect prey. Turnleftalongthe laneandcarryonfor 10minutesorso, untilyou reach Ivy House Farmont heright .Pause herefor a while, astheremay beafew swallow s swoopingafterfliesattracted bythe horses

Editor’s Note: - Many thanks to Rich Copland for another lovely walk and photos.

Oppositethefarmhouse, the publicfootpath iseasyto pick u p again. Afterthreefieldsofeasy walking overgrasslandyou willreach the woodland knownas Meriden Shafts Thenamegoes way b ack intime

Inthe 13th centurylocal villagerscreatedfarmlandoutof virginterritoryand helditfreehold, sodidnot haveto paytax for keepingtheir p igsin what was thenrecordedas “the Shafts” In 1532, Elizabeth

Botilerinherited 120acresof w oodland , “much ofitinthe Shafts” .

Turnleftontothesunken bridleway, lookingoutforthenearbyentranceintothe woodontheright The winding woodlandfootpathproceeds besidea plantationoftalllarch treesthatattracttinyacrobatic goldcrests, thesmallest European b ird They havea very highp itchedcall, likeasqueaky h ingethat needsoiling. Aftercrossingalow lyingmarshy patch therouteemergesintorough grassland, previously used bythe PonyClub.Buzzardscanoften beseensoaringabove, onthelookoutforyoungrabb its I haveseenonered kite hereand hopefullythey willsoon becomeas wellestabli shedasourlocal buzzards Continuediagonallytothefarcornerofthegrassland wherethetrack takesyou b ack tothe Showell Lanestarting point. Rich Copland

Year 11 student Hannah Meek has been selected to play for England in the forthcoming Euro and World Championship competitions. She was one of two top winning girls to get a place on the team.

As a member of the England team for the 2023 British Internationals, Hannah will play in venues up and women, men, girls and boys all playing in their own classes, competing for prestige and cash prizes. during lockdown and encouraged by her dad, a former darts player himself. “We’ve got a dartboard, I’ll give it a go,” Hannah thought and with that she

10-18 year olds after the lockdowns ended. Hannah’s brother also plays so it looks to be something that runs in the family. “My dad is very proud of me and my brother is doing really well so I’m following in his footsteps.” format between boys and girls. This can also result in differences in prize money. “It’s a bit devastating as we all pay the same entry fees,” said Hannah. down the country as well as in other countries including Austria and Denmark. The team is made up of

The junior competitions and Grand Prix are initially played mixed with boys and girls competing together. Hannah and then into the girls’ team which plays separately from the boys. After this there are slight differences in the

The next stop for Hannah is playing in Skegness in April and onwards to in Denmark in September. Whilst currently concentrating on playing well and progressing in the Euros, World Championships and tours, Hannah says that she wants to take up the sport professionally. “My aim is to play at the Alexandra Palace as a professional, to be as great as the legendary Eric Bristow.”

We’ve seen a full-blown return to school trips this academic year and students have been enthusiastic about taking part...

There have been several trips to the theatre including one to the Globe in London to see The Tempest and another to see Noughts and Crosses at The Belgrade Theatre, Coventry. Other trips have seen students out and about doing coursework for geography and history and groups of litter pickers.

Trips are an essential part of school life, helping to deepen the study experience for students.

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