December Grounds and Community Project Update
Our community and volunteer day last month was very well attended and thankfully, the rain held off. Big thanks to everyone who came along and helped us to lift the Beech saplings before the path works began. Also thanks to SRUC whose conservation and wildlife students completed an ecological evaluation in advance to ensure we were looking after the special environment.
We are excited to report that the team have achieved something we know has been on the wish list of people in our village for a very long time….we are delighted to share the news that your new footpath has been installed! Thanks to Shambellie Estate for allowing us to make use of this strip of land we have improved the rough grass track that existed and now there is a smart new path. The efficient and skilled work of local contractors Aitchison Groundworks, combined with support from Brendan and Roni from the Shambellie House Team means this part of the project has been completed on time, connecting New Abbey village to Shambellie House lower car park. This offers improved and safe access for those looking to enjoy the natural environment or visit Shambellie House and Grounds.
Celebration Event
On Friday 10th January at 2pm we will host an official opening to mark the occasion. This will give us an opportunity to thank our partners and sponsors, Coastal Communities Fund, DG Council Active Travel, New Abbey Charitable Trust and Solway Firth Partnership. We plan to have an open fire (there might be Hot Chocolate!) in one of our outdoor learning spaces as part of the celebrations. All are welcome!
In other news we recently installed new seating and tables in one of our outdoor learning spaces. Wood was supplied locally, from Kingan’s and are we are very lucky to have them on our doorstep able to supply bespoke sizes to meet our needs. Thanks to our staff and a stellar effort from our volunteers, Dennis, Steven, Graeme and Parsa, who helped us complete this work. This is an area that has already been used for outdoor groups and we hope the changes made will ensure that this area continues to provide a relaxed and inspiring space for people to enjoy the outdoors here at Shambellie.
We are grateful to local suppliers, McDermids who have supported us with competitive prices for hand tools and basic equipment for our increasing band of volunteers. We continue to work in partnership with Cloverglen when they are onsite to maintain the grounds and recent works have included bracken clearing and tidying up the lower car park, removing leaf and litter debris. There is lots more to do but with our willing group of volunteers from Cloverglen, local asylum seekers and DG Council’s Project Search Intern we hope you can see that we are starting to make a difference. Please enjoy.
Funded by the New Abbey Charitable Trust and:
Supported by: Shambellie House Trust plus:
