Recently, NHSN were awarded £150 from the Alpkit Foundation to help inspire wonder in young North East naturalists
The Alpkit Foundation are an independent charity committed to help lower barriers so more people can access the benefits of the outdoors, focusing on small awards that have a direct impact. They give awards to improve education, environment, diversity, mental health and participation in the natural world.
Thanks to the recent funding, we were able to purchase resources to help improve Gosforth Nature Reserve’s education programme and the delivery of Gosforth’s Wild Web. These resources include new pond nets for pond dipping activities, wildflower seeds to be planted at local schools and community groups and nature art materials such as outdoor chalk and leaf bashing kits.
More excitingly, we got to see some of the new pond nets in action at Gosforth Nature Reserve, with a recent visit from the Newcastle Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) Programme, facilitated by Children North East. Volunteer Education Rangers took the group into the Ridley Hide to observe birds with binoculars and then found abundant wildlife at the pond with a splash of pond dipping. One of the Volunteers, Julian, said
“We found a range of interesting catches to talk about with the children, including a Water Scorpion and an Eft, which is a juvenile Newt with its external gills still present.”
The HAF Programme is designed to support families and young people who are eligible for free school meals or in need throughout the school holidays. It was wonderful to have the group visit Gosforth Nature Reserve and discover their local wildlife. Here are some of the children’s thoughts from the trip:
“I loved spotting all the wildlife”
“I’d never seen a newt before”
“We love nature”
This has been such a positive, successful fund for young people throughout the North East, and with the support from Alpkit Foundation and NHSN’s wonderful volunteers, countless more young naturalists will be inspired by nature.
Find out more about Alpkit Foundation via their website: https://alpkit.com/pages/foundation