PRESS RELEASE

01 February 2010

MINDINGTHE GARDEN

KNUTSFORD CHILDMINDERS EARN WILDLIFE FRIENDLY GARDEN AWARD

A childminding company in Knutsford has qualified for a Bronze Wildlife Friendly Garden Award from Cheshire Wildlife Trust, and are now working towards a Silver award – with help from their charges.

Sarah Neville and Nigel Graven, known as Knutsford Childminding, are an established childminding company caring for up to nine children aged between nine months and ten years in a home-from-home environment. Outside play has always been an important part of the day and children are encouraged to make good use of the garden. When they found out about Cheshire Wildlife Trust’s Wildlife Friendly Garden Award scheme Sarah said “We re-examined the garden in terms of the wildlife that uses it and how we can make simple changes that are safe for the children.”

Following the changes, the couple applied for and were awarded the Bronze award in October 2009 for their efforts so far. Sarah and Nige are now thinking about what to do next and how to work towards a Silver award. Sarah says, “The children were very proud to receive their Bronze award and told their parents all about the photos they had taken of the garden and the work they had done”.

Their first step for moving towards the Silver award was to involve the children in a consultation about what they would like to see happening in the garden. There are a number of options under consideration and of course their main consideration when any changes are planned has to be the wellbeing and safety of all the children.

Sarah said: “After careful consideration and consultation with the children, we have chosen to start a log pile in the top corner of the garden as our next project. This will hopefully become a refuge and feeding site for garden bugs, slugs and snails, frogs and hedgehogs. The children have decided that they can be involved by going for nature walks and collecting the logs, leaves, fir cones and sticks they find en route. They will bring these to the garden and add them to the pile.”

Like all childminders, Sarah and Nige work closely with the parents of children who attend their home and are keeping parents informed through their newsletters and daily chats about why their children might suddenly start wanting to bring twigs with them in the morning!

The children are now keen to start watching the log pile for any animals and insects that have taken up residence there, “Although we have talked about not disturbing the pile too much as a sleeping animal might be woken and frightened,” added Sarah.

Further suggestions from the children for the garden include putting up a bird box and starting a vegetable plot or compost heap, all of which are great ideas for getting children out into the garden and involved with the planning and implementation of new projects... and just enjoying the wonders any garden can give no matter what the size.

The Wildlife Friendly Garden Award scheme is FREE to enter and those who qualify for a Gold, Silver or Bronze award will receive a Wildlife Friendly Garden Award plaque, to display on their gate or on a post in the garden as well as discounts on gardening products and other ongoing benefits.

Further information and application forms are available from our wildlife gardening web pages, call 01948 820728 or email wildlifegardening@cheshirewt.cix.co.uk

For tips on how to make your garden more wildlife friendly please send a regular stamped A5 SAE requesting a ‘Wildlife Friendly Garden Awards leaflet’ to Cheshire Wildlife Trust, Bickley Hall Farm, Bickley Nr Malpas, Cheshire, SY14 8EF.

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