Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust are celebrating a Wilder Watford by bringing together the region’s conservation charities and organisations to host ‘Wildfest’, a festival for nature, on Saturday 13 July in Cassiobury Park. The wild day out will feature a range of family-friendly activities, opportunities to learn about wildlife, and advice on how to protect it.

Watford is a hotbed of wild things happening, and, across the Borough, this has been supported by the Trust’s Wilder Watford project which has been running for two years. The project has resulted in greater engagement with communities, who are keen to see their town become a wilder place for people and wildlife.

Here are five highlights showcasing how Watford is going wilder:

• The Trust recently launched a Wilder Schools project, offering every school in the area a visit from a Wilder School Champion with advice on how to make their grounds more wildlife friendly.
• Working together with Rediscovering the River Colne (led by Watford Borough Council) and Community Connections CIC, the Trust gave eight young people, aged 14-18, a place on a Youth Volunteer Scheme, where they carried out practical conservation work on the River Colne.
• The wildlife charity has supported the Green Heart of Watford project to make St Mary’s churchyard in the centre of the town a better place for people and wildlife, and, along with Friends of the Earth and Butterfly Conservation, have created a list of ideas for the space. The project group is keen to engage students at St John’s Primary School and have asked students to help them track their progress by conducting biodiversity surveys in the church yard.
• Peregrine Falcons have been nesting on the YMCA’s Charter House in the town centre since 2017. This year, a newly-installed webcam is providing a public live-stream of all the action from their nest tray and everyone can tune in to see two chicks being raised there. The Trust have been involved in the installation of a further Peregrine nest tray on the roof of Watford Football Club’s Vicarage Road Stadium in the hope that it will attract a breeding pair there too.
• Last year, Watford Borough Council led a major restoration project on the wetlands in Cassiobury Park Local Nature Reserve to desilt former watercress beds, transforming an area larger than a football pitch into an area of shallow pools with plenty of marginal vegetation. These, alongside additional ponds and scrapes, have been designed so that they will soon become home to a diverse ecosystem for wading birds, amphibians, invertebrates and reptiles, and it is hoped in time Water Voles and Water Shrews too.

Rachel Rogers, Engagement Coordinator at the Trust said:

“It’s fantastic to see the appetite that exists within the Watford community to make local spaces and the town wilder. Our Wildfest event is being supported by many of the local groups and organisations working for wildlife in the area and they will be on hand to provide information about our local wildlife, share advice and provide further inspiration for those who want to do their bit to help it. Plus, there will be freebies to take home, such as wildflower seeds and mini pond kits – all helping to create more wild spaces for wildlife and people to thrive.

“A host of free activities will be on offer on the day. Visitors will be able to discover some of the wildlife that lives in Cassiobury ponds, and will be invited to make their own mini pond for a garden or patio. If you’re feeling creative, you’ll be able to make stick people, seed bombs and natural arts, as well as getting involved in drumming workshops, using recycled tin drums. Younger visitors can burn off some energy by taking part in Animal Olympics, and, at the same time, learn some fascinating facts about the natural world. Plus, there may be a chance to see some wildlife species close up! We are keeping our fingers crossed for good weather which will also give people the chance to enjoy going on a bug hunt, a guided butterfly walk with Butterfly Conservation or a bird walk with RSPB Watford.”

“We hope to see lots of people embracing all that’s on offer at Wildfest and engaging with the natural world – and, of course, to Watford going even wilder!”

Wildfest will be held on the grass area between the Hub and Gade Avenue carpark, between 10am and 4pm, with activities taking place throughout the park. For more information, click here.