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12 days of giving: please nominate us!

PLEASE nominate us to help us get £1000 to support our work in developing the nature reserve. The Movement for Good Awards run by The Benefact Group is their annual programme of giving that anyone can get involved in. Here’s how it works: IMPORTANT: We

Wildlife Focus: Otter

Earlier this month, our survey team captured this stunning clip of an otter coming out of the water at Townend Field Nature Reserve!  A Snapshot of the Species Conservation status: Numbers & Recovery in the UK Once pushed to the

Lights, camera, action at Townend Field!

We had something a little different happening at the reserve recently… Independent film-maker Lucy Smith came along with her camera to capture the sights and stories of our new nature reserve. Lucy was keen to chat with a few of

A rare visitor at Townend Field!

We’ve had some truly exciting news from the reserve – and it comes with feathers! Thanks to our ongoing partnership with Askham Bryan College, one of their camera traps caught something very special: a common crane, from back in June. Now,

Our very first members’ meeting!

What a brilliant start – thank you to everyone who came along to our very first members’ gathering! It was wonderful to see so many friendly faces and hand out membership cards in person. We heard inspiring updates from trustees

We were joined by 13 amazing volunteers today!

We were joined by 13 amazing volunteers today! The Island is now almost entirely clear of Himalayan balsam – thank you so much to everyone who helped. We are incredibly lucky to have so much support. We would love to

Did you notice a few extra helping hands on the reserve today?

We were delighted to welcome staff and volunteers from Beningbrough Hall (National Trust), who generously spent the day clearing vegetation along the boundary wall. This forms part of their outreach commitment to support local projects, and we’re incredibly grateful for

Townend Field by local artist Colin Swinton

Colin is a local artist who lives in Great Ouseburn and has kindly donated this wonderful picture he has painted in support of the campaign to turn Townend field into a Nature Reserve. We’re sure you will agree what a

We Did It

WE DID IT!

As of 4pm today, our total stands at a whopping £275,350—we’ve officially reached the asking price to buy Townend Field! We are completely blown away. No grants. No big corporate sponsors. Just pure community power—you made this happen! From cake

Fundraising Totaliser

We’re So Close – Just £5,600 to Go!

We can hardly believe it… after a whirlwind few weeks and an incredible show of support, our fundraising total now stands at a phenomenal £267,609! That’s right—just £5,600 more and we’ll hit the asking price to buy Townend Field! We’re

Big Imaginations, Little Artists!

Big Imaginations, Little Artists!

The amazing kids at Great Ouseburn Primary School have been busy again—and this time, they’ve put their hearts onto paper with some brilliant drawings showing how they’d love to use Townend Field. From wildflower meadows and bug hotels to peaceful