Newsletter; Edition 4 Autumn 2011

Inspiring local people to love their wild spaces

The last few months have seen two new projects start up, both funded by the Environment Agency and aimed at helping communities to become more resilient to fl ooding.

Steven Preston is the Emergency Planning Offi cer with Cleveland EPU Tees Valley and is focussing on getting the right information out to the people who need it and raising awareness of simple measures people can take to prepare for fl ooding incidents. Ideas so far include a calendar featuring artwork by local primary school children and including useful information, contacts and advice. You can learn more about fl ooding at www.environment-agency.gov.uk.

Living Waterways Offi cer Kenny Crooks is based at the Tees Valley Wildlife Trust and is looking to support communities to install features that will help to contain fl ooding and also add to the general biodiversity of rivers and becks throughout the Tees Valley where fl ooding is or may be an issue. We’re looking forward to working with both of them in the future; so much more can be achieved if we come together and pool resources, knowledge and ideas.

Flood Partnership

WelcomeAfter such a warm and dry spring, hopes were high for a good summer and despite a few hiccups, we’ve not been disappointed. Thank you to all those who came along to our summer events, we hope you enjoyed them as much as we did.

The Teddy Bears Picnics were a great way to enjoy the becks with games, crafts and tasty treats, in partnership with Sure Start. The bug hunts gave us the chance to take part in a nationwide survey organised by the OPAL Project (Open Air Laboratories); we handed out packs to encourage bug hunters to do their own surveys along the becks. Check out the OPAL website to see how you can get involved.

We took Boro Becks crafts and competitions to the Beechwood Ward Community Gala, Easterside Fun Day and Park End Family Gala and guided walks started again in September after a summer break with a walk up Marton West Beck to Newham Grange Country Farm and its lovely café.

Future plans include the launch of Little Beck Explorer packs to borrow from libraries and to use with groups at Children’s Centres. A child friendly back pack will be fi lled with equipment to help families get the most out of walks along the becks. There will also be information books and stories for follow up activities. Children are naturally curious and we want them to experience the joy of discovering things for themselves in their local green spaces.

Join our growing band of followers who keep track of the latest news on our facebook page and twitter feed @BoroBecksTeam and upload your becks photos, old and new on our fl ickr site. And fi nally, congratulations to competition winner Mrs Reynolds from Priestfi elds, we hope you enjoy using your new digital camera to take lots of photos of your beck valleys.

Contact details; 01642 515618

Ormesby Beck in Autumn

Boro Becks Round Up

Ormesby Beck Marton West Beck

Spencer Beck Middle Beck

Contact details; Boro Becks Project, c/o Stewart Park, The Grove,

Marton, Middlesbrough, TS7 8AR

Work will begin on the pond this autumn, involving digging out the new one and using the spoil to fi ll in the old one to help control the Crassula plants. We’re also looking to clear out the ditches connecting the pond with the beck to enable water voles to move around more freely and expand their population. We’ll be installing the bench designed by Graeme Hopper with Berwick Hills Primary School and also looking at building pond dipping platforms. When fi nished, the pond will be a fantastic resource for schools, wildlife and local residents and we plan to include pond dipping in our events programme next year.

We took part in the Butterfl y Conservation Society’s Big Butterfl y Count this year, counting the numbers seen on two 15 minute walks down Ormesby Beck. The most common butterfl y was the Large White but we also saw fresh Speckled Woods down at the meadow which has also provided lots of fl owers for bees this year.

Thank you to everyone who came along to our consultation events back in July, they gave us lots of ideas about what people would like to see and where improvements should go. We will be working with artist Graeme Hopper and children from St Edward’s, Beech Grove and Newham Bridge Primary Schools to turn these ideas in to reality with plans to renovate the two metal bridges across the beck and create seating away from housing. We also hope to plant a small number of trees to provide shade in summer and lots of autumn colour.

We signed up to Plantlife’s Wildfl ower count in the summer and completed a survey of a 1km stretch of the path down Marton West Beck upstream of Devils Bridge. This provides vital information to help scientists monitor the eff ects of climate change on local plant populations.

Barry and the volunteers have been busy widening the paths along the beck behind Thorntree Park to improve access and are looking to organise thinning out of the woodland area at the back of Ormesby School with the Durham Tees Valley Probation Trust. We’re also in the process of working up projects with the Princes Trust to give young people the opportunity to work along the becks and make a positive contribution to their management.

The wildfl ower meadow near Ormesby School has been cut and raked off and the fl owers planted at Easter in the copse by Caldicotes Primary School are doing well. The wild strawberries have really taken off and are spreading happily.

As part of our plan to improve Middle Beck, we visited the site in the summer with artist Graeme Hopper and council offi cers to look at the bridges across the beck. We now have a clearer idea as to what we can do to improve their visual impact and make them interesting features in their own right. Design workshops will be organised at Park End and Pallister Park Primary Schools so that local children can really make their mark on their local beck valley.

Barry and Living Waterways Offi cer Kenny Crooks took groups of young people down Middle Beck over the summer as part of the National Citizen Service pilot scheme for 16 year olds. They picked litter, surveyed insects for the Big Bug Count and generally learned more about their local area and its management.

Autumn sees the start of more practical improvements along the becks and also marks a year since our project started. Find out below what progress has been made and how you can get involved.

Events and Activities

Contact details; Boro Becks Project, c/o Stewart Park, The Grove, Marton, Middlesbrough, TS7 8AR

Wrap up warm and enjoy more free family events, community practical tasks and themed guided walks this autumn. For our outdoor events please dress for the weather, with good footwear and warm, waterproof clothing. Bring a packed lunch and drinks for all day walks.The events are aimed at helping local people explore what is on their doorstep so in most cases, parking is extremely limited; please walk to the events or use public transport. For more details or to book where needed, ring 01642 515618 or email borobecks@middlesbrough.gov.uk.Please note; all children (16 years and under) must be accompanied by an adult.

Sunday 16th October 10.30am-3pmEston Hills Circular WalkFollow the Tees Link footpath up Spencer Beck to Flatts Lane and on to the heady heights of Eston Hills for an insight in to the nationally important prehistory of this fascinating area with archaeologist Dr Steve Sherlock.Bring a packed lunch and drink.Please meet outside the Thorntree Park Pavillion at 10.30am. If travelling by car, please meet at Stewart Park car park at 10am for lift to start of walk. Minibus provided for return to Thorntree and Stewart Parks.Limited numbers, booking essential.

Autumn Family Roadshow Come along and enjoy free family fun with face painting, children’s crafts and live animal handling displays with Animal Story. Tuesday 25th October 12-3pm at the Sutton Estate Residents’ Centre, Collin Avenue/Sutton WayThursday 27th October 12-3pm at The Pavillion, Thorntree Park

Friday 28th October 2-4pm at Berwick Hills LibraryNature Workshop Give nature a helping hand this winter by making a cosy insect shelter or a recycled bird feeder.

Friday 4th November 10.30am-2pmAutumn AmbleEnjoy a 5 mile circular walk with the Boro Becks Ranger as we take a closer look at identifying trees and enjoy their contribution to our local landscape. Please meet at Nature’s World visitor centre.

Saturday 26th November 11am-3pm National Tree Week Family Roadshow at Charlbury Road Community Centre Celebrate the trees of the becks with a feast of family fun. Activities include tree seed and bulb planting sessions, children’s tree-themed crafts, green woodworking demonstrations, tree trails with prizes and willow weaving. Drinks and hot food will be available to buy; all activities and crafts are free.

It’s been a busy summer with Barry and the volunteers carrying out a multitude of tasks with help from Sam, our work experience placement. Practical work along the becks included balsam bashing along Ormesby Beck, footpath clearance and regular litter picks at all sites. In addition, the management of the fl ower meadows along the becks took up much of September. A team from Groundwork strimmed the grass where possible and it was all hands on deck to rake and remove it from the sites. This reduces fi re risk, tidies the sites up and most importantly prevents the grass from rotting down and returning nutrients to the soil. Rich soil allows a few aggressive plants such as hogweed and nettles to take over, it’s important that we have lots of diff erent grasses and fl owers to

create a better wildlife habitat and bring colour to the becks.

In the coming months, the thinning of the young tree plantations along Marton West Beck, Middle Beck and Spencer Beck will begin as Barry works alongside the Durham Tees Valley Probation Trust and Woodland Connections to open up the canopies and improve sight lines. Trees are precious but give so much more when they have plenty of room to grow and develop. Some, such as hazel, can also be coppiced to provide bean poles and plant stakes for use on local allotments with a fraction of the carbon footprint of imported bamboo.

New volunteers are always welcome so if you have time and energy to

Volunteer Updatespare and want to take an active part in managing your green spaces, please contact Barry on (01642) 515618 or at borobecks@middlesbrough.gov.uk for more information.

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Autumn is the ideal season for celebrating trees in our urban landscapes and the vital role they play as wildlife habitats. They are the oldest living things in the world, cleaning our air, regulating the temperature of our towns, giving us shade and shelter, binding the soil together and, on a windy day, they provide a welcome alternative to the urban backdrop of traffi c noise. They shelter a multitude of insects and other creatures all year round; over 400 diff erent types of insect live on oak trees for some or all of their life cycle. The dramatic changing colours are a visual reminder of the preparations trees have to make for winter in order to conserve water and survive. Leaves become a liability in winter as they are easily damaged by frosts and storms and so broad-leaved trees let them go. Before this happens, shortening days and low temperatures causes the green chlorophyll in the leaves to break down, revealing the yellow colour of carotene, another pigment present all year but usually hidden. As sugars become concentrated in the leaves, especially during dry, late summers, red anthocyanin can also be seen. A dry summer followed by a sunny, dry autumn with cool but not freezing temperatures creates ideal conditions for an impressive autumnal show.

To enjoy this season in all its splendour, follow the paths along Marton West Beck to Fairy Dell where as you walk south from Keith Road, the young mixed plantations give way to more mature willow and ash trees. Another colourful circular route takes you up Middle Beck and across Ladgate Lane to follow

the boundary path at the edge of the Ormesby Hall estate. Here, the horse chestnut and cherry trees are particularly stunning in red and gold. You return through Stewart Park with its magnifi cent specimen trees such as the stately evergreen Cedar of Lebanon and walk back down Ormesby Beck where mature poplars mark the entrance to the valley.

Autumn isn’t just a season of visual change, it also sees a shift in the sounds of the natural world. As the breeding season comes to an end, the summer warblers fall silent as they concentrate on building up energy reserves by foraging on the ripe fruits and insects for their long migration south. The sedge warblers and whitethroats along Ormesby Beck, the chiff chaff s and blackcaps along Marton West Beck and the willow warblers along Middle Beck; we registered their arrival with a sense of relief and celebration but their departure can be harder to note. By the time this newsletter goes out, the swifts will be long gone, their dramatic and noisy aerial acrobatics above the town consigned to memory, a true sign of the changing seasons.

If you spot a problem when out on the becks, use the numbers below to report it;

Important numbers

Pollution incidentsEnvironment Agency’s 24-hour pollution hotline 0800 807060

Rubbish in the becks or along the valleysMiddlesbrough Council Environment hotline 01642 726001 or Freephone 0800 0136001

Contact details; borobecks@middlesbrough.gov.uk / www.middlesbrough.gov.uk

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