The Sheridan family - winners of the High Sheriff of Dorset’s
"Easter Nature Trail Eggstravaganza" at Alder Hills Nature Reserve

The event was supported by the High Sheriff of Dorset 2009/10, Mrs Victoria McDonaugh, and raised funds for Dorset Crimebeat and LV= Streetwise with the nature trail set by Joy Wallis of Dorset Wildlife Trust.

The rain held off as Elaine and Liam Sheridan and their two children Holly (6) and John (4) spent an hour in the nature reserve answering Clue Sheet questions, completing a Scavenger Hunt by collecting items from the ground, and looking for ‘signs of spring’.

Photos © Andrew Rapkins, Cloudlight Photography 2010 (see bottom of page)

Courtesy of Sainsbury’s Talbot Heath all the participants, grown ups too, received a crème egg for their efforts and the Sheridan family were delighted to receive a ‘Smarties’ easter egg for the family with the day’s best answers. Mum Elaine said of the morning, “We loved seeing the secret pond and all the holly bushes because my daughter is called Holly and likes seeing her plant!”

Alison Shelton, LV= Streetwise manager said “We had a section in the Clue Sheet asking what people loved about the walk and were rewarded with heartwarming comments such as ‘Experiencing it with my 3 year old boy seeing the sights’ and ‘Although we come here regularly we still noticed things for the first time because of the trail clues’ and ‘An unexpected bit of nature in our town’. They really brought it home that we had instigated a valuable family activity so whilst the numbers turning out this year were on the low side, now we know how well received it was it will become an annual event.”

Dorset Crimebeat is a scheme backed annually by the High Sheriff of Dorset and now comes under the wing of LV= Streetwise. It is a fund that gives a grant of £500 to young people who have a good idea about how to make their community a safer and better place to live.

Our thanks go to the High Sheriff of Dorset 2009/10, Mrs Victoria McDonaugh, Dorset Wildlife Trust, the Urban Heaths Partnership and Sainsbury’s Talbot Heath and Talbot View Community Centre for their fantastic support for the event.

The nature reserve is in an urban setting, tucked away at the back of Alder Road between Sainsbury’s and McDonalds. It is an SSSI and as such is rich with wildlife, surrounded by heathland and has a large lake formed from an old clay pit.

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Meet Andy, our official LV= Streetwise photographer for all our 2010 events, kindly donating his time and talents to help bring our events to life and back into our memories.

 

 

 

"Cloudlight is all about great images. Beautiful photos of you and your family. Relaxed, informal, fun and timeless."

Andy Rapkins of Cloudlight Photography