Latest news with #DukeofBurgundy
BBC News
16-03-2025
- General
- BBC News
Sleaford dental practice mural by Peachzz puts smiles on faces
A mural celebrating the buildings and wildlife of a Lincolnshire town has brought the outside wall of a dental practice to artwork is on the side of Treeline Dental's building in Boston Road, Sleaford, It was made by Sheffield street artist Megan Russell, otherwise known as mural depicts the Sleaford Navigation and Money's Mill, as well as local wildlife including a swan, a duck, a Duke of Burgundy butterfly and a dog violet, which has been voted the county flower of Lincolnshire. Peachzz started the mural on 4 March, and it took her and an assistant three days to Kesteven District Council said the building had recently undergone repairs and restoration through the Sleaford Shopfront Grant Jimmey Palahey, clinical director at Treeline Dental, said: "It seems to be putting a lot of smiles on lots of faces."Dentistry for us is a lot more than just teeth and mouths. It's holistic care so [the mural] has provided something in the community that people can be proud of and represents Sleaford." The work was funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and the owner of the came second in the Street Art Cities best mural in the world contest last year for her piece Reverie, in said: "Everyone was so welcoming and [Sleaford] was a really nice place... I hope it's quite uplifting when people see it."I like putting nature in places where there isn't lots of it, like in towns and cities."District council leader Richard Wright said: "It's been so warmly welcomed, with lots of people stopping to compliment Peachzz during the works and joining the positivity around it." Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.
BBC News
10-03-2025
- General
- BBC News
Views sought on plans to boost wildlife recovery in Wiltshire
Bats, birds, woodlands and urban green spaces are the focus of a new plan to help wildlife recover to its former and Wiltshire councils have worked together to create a Local Recovery Strategy in response to the government's pledge to protect 30% of the country's land, water and seas for nature by two councils have now put the plan out to public councillor Dominic Muns, cabinet member for environment, warned: "The UK is one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world, with one in six species threatened with extinction." 'Fairer and greener' Habitats which the plan focuses on include chalk and limestone grassland, woodland, heathland, acid bogs and acid grassland and strategy sets out that protecting and enhancing nature is not just an environmental imperative "but a social and economic one as well".It says individuals, businesses and communities all benefit from biodiversity, including from well-being, food, water security and flooding. Mr Muns said: "By focusing conservation efforts where they are most needed, the strategy will support wildlife to thrive and can also help to deliver wider environmental benefits such as cleaner air and waterways, reduced flood risk, and enhanced green spaces for local communities."Species the plan particularly hopes to help include bats, farmland birds, lapwing and stone curlew, the Duke of Burgundy butterfly, juniper and arable Watts, Swindon Borough Council's cabinet member for the environment and transport, said: "The plan will help us achieve a fairer and greener Swindon by ensuring developers prioritise biodiversity net gain and that our communities benefit from a healthier natural environment."People can comment on the proposals until 19 April. This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations.
Telegraph
22-02-2025
- Telegraph
The 10 best walks in the Chiltern Hills – all starting and ending at a characterful pub
For keen walkers, the Chilterns offer the promise of an adventure playground on the doorstep of the nation's capital, just an hour from central London. They are also a haven for flourishing wildlife populations including muntjac and fallow deer, badgers, exotic birds and butterflies (including a healthy population of the endangered Duke of Burgundy) and rare species of wildflowers. Around 320 square miles have been designated as a Natural Landscapes (formerly Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, AONB) with a network of more than 2,000 miles of footpaths stretching from beyond Dunstable in Bedfordshire (north east) to Goring in Oxfordshire (south west) as well as parts of Hertfordshire and a healthy chunk of Buckinghamshire in its central section. Layers of history are revealed in the area's long barrows (Neolithic), round barrows (Bronze Age) and sections of both the Ridgeway and the Icknield Way, two of the most ancient tracks in the British Isles. The Ashridge Estate, run by the National Trust since 1926, is a 5,000-acre haven of woodlands stretching from Berkhamstead to Ivinghoe Beacon in the north. Climb the Bridgewater Monument (open at weekends from April to October) for a stupendous view over the entire area. The Chilterns are home to some quintessentially English pubs, and all those selected here have been picked for their great service, excellent food and hearty walker-friendly welcome. 1. Stoke Row & Berins Hill Oxfordshire A walk with the promise of a meal and a drink at one of the most atmospheric gourmet country pubs in the area, where Kate Winslet celebrated her first marriage. The trail takes in woodland paths, rolling countryside and some sweeping views from Berins Hill over Oxfordshire. Don't miss the Maharaja's Well in Stoke Row, gifted to the village by the Maharaja of Benares in the mid-19th century. Follow the trail north behind the pub skirting Bush Wood and Oakingham Bottom before joining English Lane. At English Farm, head west across Ipsden Heath (Woodland Trust) and on to Well Place. Then follow the Chilterns Way to Berins Hill before crossing the valley at Yewtree Brow and heading back east to the pub. 2. Ivinghoe Beacon and Gallows Hill Buckinghamshire This is a walk amongst some of the best views in the Chilterns – as you traverse a chalk escarpment with the wind in your hair. The Ivinghoe Hills form the northernmost finger of the Chiltern uplands, crossed by both the Icknield Way and the Ridgeway (in use for more than 5,000 years). Don't miss the climb up the 172 steps to the top of the Bridgewater Monument at the Ashridge Estate. Follow the road north from the Greyhound before taking the bridleway on your left up through the woods and along the steep escarpment to the Bridgewater monument. Follow the scarp line due north to Ivinghoe Beacon (the start/finish of The Ridgeway) and Gallows Hill to the east. On the return leg, take the south-western branch of the Icknield Way Trail and a short section of road back into Aldbury. 3. Tring Park & Grim's Ditch Hertfordshire A walk to delight history buffs, this trail follows the chalk escarpment through Bull's Wood and along the Icknield Way, through countryside that was once part of the grounds of Tring House. The latter is famous for the obelisk built to commemorate the secret meetings between Charles II and his lover Nell Gwyn in the nearby summerhouse. The return leg follows Grim's Ditch, an Iron Age earthwork. From the pub, locate the path heading north west along the eastern boundary of Bull's Wood to the obelisk and the summerhouse. Retrace your footsteps briefly before following the Icknield Way south west along the escarpment with great views over Tring Park and continue to Hastoe. Return along Grim's Ditch and back around to the pub. 4. Pulpit Hill and Whiteleaf Hill Buckinghamshire Although relatively short, this route takes in stunning scenery, prehistoric burial mounds and picturesque villages. Whiteleaf Hill has a Neolithic long barrow and two Bronze Age round barrows, while above the beech forest on Pulpit Hill is a hill fort with some great views looking north west. Grangelands Nature Reserve, meanwhile, is a haven for wildflowers. From The Plough (expect celebrities and maybe the former Prime Minister David Cameron, who famously forgot to scoop up his daughter Nancy after a visit here from nearby Chequers), follow the bridleway north through Grangelands Nature Reserve and up on to Pulpit Hill. Then take the Ridgeway and the North Bucks Way to Great Kimble before heading south west through the villages of Askett, Monks Risborough and Whiteleaf before the final yomp over Whiteleaf Hill back to the pub. 5. Three Villages Pub Crawl Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire This is a starry route, with three of the loveliest villages in the Chilterns (Fingest, Turville and Skirmett), two of the best watering holes (The Chequers and The Bull and Butcher), the Cobstone Windmill (which featured in the film Chitty Chitty Bang Bang), the set of the Vicar of Dibley (Turville) and some fine old medieval churches. It's steep in places, but the distance covered is not too taxing. From The Chequers, follow the Chiltern Way through Turville before leaving it and heading south, crossing Dolesden Lane into Great Wood. Follow in a loop around back to Skirmett with fabulous views of the famous Cobstone Windmill on Turville Hill to the north. From Skirmett head north-east through Adams Wood, up over the hill and back into Fingest. 6. Warburg Nature Reserve and Stonor Park Oxfordshire A challenging walk through both Warburg Nature Reserve, a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), and Stonor Park. High up in the Chiltern Hills, the Warburg Reserve (a site of ancient woodlands and grasslands) has its own microclimate and is renowned for birds, butterflies and wildflowers, particularly orchids. Meanwhile Stonor House, home to the Stonor family for over 800 years, has a fascinating history to match (see for opening times). This route passes through the Deer Park in front of the house. Turn left out of the pub and follow the road for 100 yards to a footpath through trees on your left. After 400 yards take the left-hand trail and loop through Warburg NR and south along the valley to Bix Bottom and Middle Assendon. Head directly north to Coxlease Farm before looping around Stonor Deer Park. The route back takes you through Stonor itself and along the Chiltern Way back to the pub. 7. Ashridge Park and Frithsden Beeches Hertfordshire This walker-friendly pub is the perfect base for exploring the forested finger of land that takes in both the ancient pollarded trees of Frithsden Beeches as well as Ashridge Park – famous for its long drive from Ashridge House (now a business school) to the Bridgewater Monument which was laid out by Capability Brown and Humphry Repton. From the pub follow the footpath south west before turning right (north west) when you meet the Hertfordshire Way. Take the detour through Frithsden Beeches and continue to Berkhamsted Common. Follow the Chiltern Way north across Ashridge Park looping back past the main house and along a delightful stretch of quiet country road back to the pub. 8. Cholesbury Hill Fort Buckinghamshire Recommended by Chilterns AONB (see for other walk suggestions), this walk starts in the ancient hilltop village of Cholesbury and follows rights of way across the open common into beech woodland. The route passes Cholesbury Camp, an Iron Age hill fort containing a rebuilt Norman church, one of only two in the country to be built inside a hill fort. Head north east from the pub to Tring Farm before turning north west for a long, straight leg through Scrubs Wood. When you meet Grim's Ditch, head back south along the Chiltern Way and across Buckland Common to explore the hill fort and then back to the pub. 9. Rupert Brooke Walk, Parslow's Hillock Buckinghamshire Famous for his love of the English countryside, the poet Rupert Brooke walked regularly in the Chilterns. This route explores the woodland to the east of Prince's Risborough which he regularly crossed on the way to Wendover station. Turn right out of the pub and then first left along Kiln Lane. At the end follow the bridleway and then the Chiltern Way along Grim's Ditch north into Hillock's Wood and then east to Hampden House. The Hampden family owned the site from before the Norman Conquest and lived in the house until 1938. Follow the maze of pathways that loop back round across Hampden Common and through Monkton Wood to Lacey Green. 10. Hambleden Explorer Buckinghamshire Hambleden, nestling in a wooded fold of the Chiltern Hills, is one of those impossibly peaceful villages right out of central casting. The problem is dragging yourself away. If you manage it, the surrounding countryside is equally sublime and this walk through the woods to the west will make a meal in the Stag & Huntsman all the more delicious. Head south into Ridge Wood and up on to Reservoir Hill before walking north into Great Wood. When the trail meets Shakespeare's Way ( follow it down through the valley and back to the pub. For more inspiration on where to stay, read Telegraph Travel guide to the best hotels in the Chilterns
Yahoo
08-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Rare butterfly 'expanding' in county
A rare butterfly that is in decline is "now stable and expanding" in a county due to work carried out by volunteers. Network Rail said a project involving the Butterfly Conservation and Chiltern Rangers wildlife groups was helping to protect the Duke of Burgundy species in Buckinghamshire. The groups have collaborated to create suitable environments along the tracks of the West Coast Main Line. Nick Bowls, a volunteer for Butterfly Conservation, said the work had helped the insect "expand into new areas". Network Rail said the butterfly, whose scientific name is Hamearis lucina, was a "rapidly declining species, and in 2010 the number of separate Duke of Burgundy butterfly colonies in the Chilterns area of Buckinghamshire was only two". It has worked for the past 10 years with the Upper Thames branch of Butterfly Conservation and landowners to prepare suitable host sites, that have been expanded to take in Network Rail land. Mr Bowls said the work had helped "the butterfly, which is the one suffering the biggest contraction in range in the UK, to expand into new areas". "In many parts of England, the Duke has been lost from entire landscapes but the colony near Princes Risborough is now stable and expanding," he said. Jude Ward, environment manager for Network Rail's North West and Central region, said: "This work highlights the ability of our railway to act as a wildlife corridor by connecting scattered habitat and animal species throughout the country. "Working with external partners to align our conservation objectives allows us to create a network of habitat that's bigger, better and more connected." A recent volunteer day saw helpers plant 1,250 "shelter belt" trees and 2,400 cowslip wildflowers along the margin of Long Orchard's chalk grassland meadow. Another volunteer day is planned for Tuesday, 11 February. Follow Beds, Herts and Bucks news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X. Reintroduction of butterfly in England a 'success' 'Shocking' drop in butterfly numbers - charity Ponies graze land for benefit of rare butterfly Network Rail Butterfly Conservation Chiltern Rangers
