A £20,000 grant has helped London Wildlife Trust reopen a popular boardwalk in Hillingdon’s Denham Lock Wood.
The area alongside Frays River is a designated Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), and during lockdown, it became a haven for local residents keen to enjoy the great outdoors.
Despite regular repairs however, the weather took its toll on parts of the 170m stretch of boardwalk and eventually it had to be closed for public access.
The Trust applied to the Landfill Communities Fund for a contribution to upgrade the most damaged area, and Grundon stepped forward to make a donation.
Its £20,000 contribution was match funded by £10,000 from the Colne Valley Regional Park via the Heritage Lottery Fund, which enabled a 100m section of the boardwalk to be replaced with a long-lasting recycled plastic wood-substitute.
“It was a real loss to the local community when we had to close the original boardwalk for safety reasons, so we are very grateful for Grundon’s donation, which helped us repair the worst part of the boardwalk for reopening. This is such a beautiful area, and we know local residents and visitors alike really value being able to access the reserve once again.”
Richard Barnes
Head of Conservation at London Wildlife Trust
Kirsti Santer, Head of Marketing & Communications at Grundon, joined the London Wildlife Trust team to visit the site and said: “We love to be involved in projects like this that encourage people to get out and about into the countryside, enjoying some exercise and seeing the diversity of nature around them. Denham Lock Wood is a haven of peace and tranquillity, and we are very pleased to have supported the great work the London Wildlife Trust team is doing.”
Joining Kirsti was Michelle Jones, Project Manager at Groundwork South, the community and environmental charity which distributes the Landfill tax monies on behalf of Grundon, and acts as the Managing Agent for the Colne Valley Regional Park
Michelle added: “We are delighted to support our partner, London Wildlife Trust, to reopen this boardwalk in the London Borough of Hillingdon, encouraging local communities to access their local countryside and experience this stunning nature reserve.”
Denham Lock Wood is one of 11 nature reserves managed by London Wildlife Trust in Hillingdon and supports some of the finest examples of wet woodland in London. It is also one of 13 SSSI’s within the Colne Valley Regional Park.