[C]arlisle Youth Zone and Cumbria Wildlife Trust have got together to help young people discover, explore and restore Wreay Woods Nature Reserve, at Wreay near Carlisle.
This new project, funded by a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund, has seen fourteen young people from Carlisle learn more about wildlife and how to look after it. The young people visited the nature reserve several times to learn about its wildlife, its natural heritage and the role natural heritage plays in our day-to-day lives. They also helped to improve the woodland by repairing boardwalks that were washed away in the floods and planted native trees.
Jamie Normington, Cumbria Wildlife Trust’s Senior Education and Volunteer Officer, says, “People can often be detached from the natural world so this is an amazing opportunity for young people from Carlisle to discover a natural place close to home. Wreay Woods Nature Reserve suffered damage in the floods of 2015 with paths that ran along the side of the river being completely washed away. The young people from Carlisle Youth Zone are helping restore the footpaths and hopefully will discover a love of nature along the way.”
The young people will celebrate the heritage that they have discovered by creatively sharing their learning with other young people at Carlisle Youth Zone, as well as with friends and family, through film, photography, poetry, games or any other creative way that inspires them.
Lynsey Buckle, Carlisle Youth Zone’s Development Manager, says: “Our members are really keen to get involved with the work at Wreay Woods Nature Reserve. For many young people this will be a rare opportunity to get into nature and have a chance to understand how they can care for it. Our team too are looking forward to developing the project with Cumbria Wildlife Trust and inspiring more young people to care for the nature around us.”
