April had our volunteer team venture to Beckenham Place Park to clear the river channel of large fallen tree branches, obstructions and litter. All removed branches were cut down and used to create habitat piles along the higher banks.
After a successful grant award from Groundworks, Rivers & People joined forces with the Friends of Chinbrook Meadows for a celebration event for how diverse the park is. Read more about the event at https://chinbrookmeadows.wordpress.com/. Twenty different species of aquatic species were found during the day of pond dipping, including smooth newts and common frogs.
A WaterBlitz is a water sampling event that helps provide a snapshot of pollution issues across a river’s catchment area.
This event is for local people and citizen scientists to take water samples of points of interest to them across the Ravensbourne Catchment (which includes the Ravensbourne, Pool, Chaffinch Brook, The Beck, Quaggy, Kyd Brook) to identify ongoing pollution issues impacting the catchment’s water quality. This event will also be an important opportunity to sample areas in the catchment that generally have relatively good water quality to understand how poorer quality stretches of our rivers could perform throughout the catchment in the absence of pollution challenges.
We started 2023 with a sunny session at Cornmill Gardens, where we cut back any branches overhanging the river and clearing all the twigs that had collected on the bank from the recent rains. We don’t remove any of the deadwood from the site, but rather move it further up the bank to create habitat piles that won’t get washed downstream.
Next up we visited the River Quaggy, at Chinbrook Meadows, where we de-silted the secondary channel that feeds into the pond and wetland area. Also that afternoon, our diligent volunteers scraped the leaf litter from the boardwalks to make them easier and safer to walk on.
After a wet December where we couldn’t get easy access to the Ladywell Field backwater channel, we returned to finish the de-silting here. The heavy digging work certainly lent itself to an extra biscuit with our tea afterwards!
Our last session of the month was in the north of the borough at Brookmill Park, where we completed our bank work to allow any pedestrians a sight line down onto the river. As an added bonus we came across a common frog, Rana temporaria, and two common toads, Bufo bufo, which is one of Lewisham’s priority action species.
An excerpt from Lewisham Council’s Biodiversity Action Plan ‘A Natural Renaissance for Lewisham (2021-2026)’
Amphibian species populations are declining at an alarming rate globally and despite its name and that it is found throughout Britain the Common Toad is not so common anymore. A study in 2016 found a significant decline (68%) of the species in the UK since 1980s with an even steeper decline in South East England (www.froglife.org)
Common Toads breed in ponds but spend most of their lives on land away from water, walking (and not hopping) around at night looking for slugs, snails, spiders and other invertebrates. They spend winter buried under log piles, stones, leaf litter or compost heaps. Adult toads usually migrate back to their birth pond to breed which is becoming more and more difficult with fences and busy roads blocking their way in urban areas. The disappearance of ponds in gardens and open spaces and two amphibian diseases (Ranavirus and Chytridiomycosis) pose further threats to toads. The Common Toad is protected from trade and sale under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended) and was identified as a priority species in the UK Biodiversity Action Plan in 2007.
Last month, the Rivers & People volunteers took part in The Thames and Tributaries ‘Plasticblitz’ week. This week of events was organised by Thames21, the Environment Agency and Rotary in the Valley (through their international End Plastic Soup campaign) to collate details on the amount and differing types of plastic pollution groups find across The Thames and it’s tributaries.
The Rivers & People group held a session at Brookmill Park where we cleared 6 bags of rubbish from the Ravensbourne River and it’s banks. A wide variety of litter was collected from plastic bottles to curtains. Our team collected 6 full bags of rubbish over a few hours and covered a stretch of river over 250 metres.
Do you cherish rivers and enjoy exploring them? Do you love the wildlife that roams our countryside? Do you want to learn about what’s being done to protect London’s life-giving rivers and how you can help?
Then join us for the third annual London Rivers Week, running from Saturday June 23 to Sunday July 1. This year’s theme is Valuing Water, and our partners are putting on a fascinating list of free activities, with something for all the family – from walks and talks and a kayak event to demonstrations and even a film premiere.
You won’t want to miss our launch event on Sunday 24th June, at Ladywell Fields from 12pm to 3pm.
You’ll be able to become a dragonfly detective, explore what’s in the water through river dipping and make discoveries through riverfly monitoring.
The event will be a showcase of citizen science programmes by a range of partners.
Find out, for example, how Thames21 volunteers collect data about the types of plastic found in the Thames, or how water quality is tested by robot boats. There are 600km of waterways in the capital. That’s the same as the distance between Brighton and Edinburgh.
And during the week, you’ll have the chance to learn about the issues that affect many of them.
Do you fancy getting to know your local stretch of river better by clearing litter? Or taking over the invasive species which also choke our rivers? We’ve also got events like that, which will help you make a difference to these lifebloods for wildlife.
Otters, trout, bats, kingfishers and eels all use London rivers – but increasingly they need the public’s help to survive and thrive, in the face of plastic pollution, sewage and the impacts of climate change.
London’s rivers are often peaceful, natural places, where we can escape city life. They are havens where we can relax by the water, watch swans nesting or if we’re lucky, spot a flash of blue as one of Britain’s most beautiful birds, a kingfisher, speeds across the water.
If you can’t wait, whet your appetite by reading case studies about 23 restoration projects which include Ladywell Fields, giving you a world of nature to explore at places that have been rewilded in recent years.
A little bit out of the Borough, but some of you might find this training interesting! (Thanks to the Rivers Trust for the information)
Location: Manchester, United Kingdom
The Rivers Trust is joining Keep Britain Tidy in assembling an army of #litterheroes for a UK wide mass clean-up as 80% of plastic in the oceans comes from land, and rivers are a significant pathway for it to get there.
To do this, they are calling on as many Rivers Trusts as possible to get behind Keep Britain Tidy’s Great British Spring Clean 2018 and hold a river cleanup volunteer event, to help highlight the importance of keeping our rivers clean.
To help Rivers Trusts hold a river clean up, we’re offering Rivers Trust members FREE accredited training for up to 12 Rivers Trusts who wish to hold a cleanup event over the weekend of the 2nd – 4th March.
This 2-day NCFE accredited course, called ‘Leading a Waterway Cleanup,’ is run by Thames21. The course will help you confidently plan and run a safe, effective and enjoyable waterway improvement event with volunteers.
They are proposing to hold the 2-day training event in Manchester (venue tbc) on Thursday 15th Feb – 16th Feb @10.30am – 3.30pm each day.
Day 1 will help you plan a waterway clean up event, covering urban waterway issues, processes and considerations involved in planning, identification of locations and recognising potential risks.
Day 2 will help you lead a successful cleanup event and will take you through the methodology for planning and running practical volunteer events, health and safety, and positive leadership behaviours and techniques.
In order to become certified, trainees must attend the 2 days and complete two assignments.
Location: National Council For Voluntary Organisations, All Saints Street, London N1 9RL, United Kingdom Date: January 30, 2018 10:00am—4:00 pm Booking: Via Eventbrite
Joint the Rivers Trust for a CaBA (Catchment Based Approach) Workshop in London to cover a range of issues including the 2018 benefits, evaluation and monitoring reporting, monitoring for catchment management encompassing water quality and the effectiveness of Natural Flood Management, CaBA and the 25-year plan, Km Enhanced and more.
Thames 21 foundational course, called Leading a Waterway Clean Up, is for people interested in learning more about waterways and why they are important. The course contains everything you need to know to plan and run safe, effective and enjoyable waterway improvement events.
There is no obligation to actually run events once you have taken the course. Some take it simply for the learning experience. But many do go on to assist our officers with Thames21-led events, and others lead events on their own with our support. Their trainees have engaged in some exciting work over the years!
course open to all, including those who may not have any prior experience with environmental issues or with working around water. We combine classroom sessions with volunteering so that you get the best possible learning experience. We also ask you to complete a small amount of written work. Our course is certified by ncfe*, the national accrediting organisation and you will receive your ncfecertificate upon completion. Having ncfe accreditation assures us that the content of our training is of a high standard and thoroughly prepares trainees to support and lead events on their own with confidence.
When do sessions take place?
We schedule sessions throughout the year in east, west and central London. Typically sessions are on weekends but there are some weekday sessions as well. Trainees must take Day 1 before Day 2 but do not need to take them in the same series. For example, you can take the Day 1 session offered in April and then, because of other commitments, not take Day 2 until July. Or September. Sessions are meant to be flexible.
See the bottom of this page for details on how to register for sessions.
We also deliver our Leading a Waterway Cleanup course to local groups who wish to be trained together. To schedule something for your group, please arrange for bespoke sessions by the Training Officer .
The event support team is a team of volunteers who assist our project officers to run safe, effective, and fun events. Become a badged group leader: With a Thames21 badge, Thames21 will support you running your own events.
How much does it cost?
The training is currently free for volunteers, with a Pricing Structure in place for volunteer managers and corporate groups. Please contact the Training Officer for more information
To Register:
You must complete an online Registration Formbefore you can take any trainings with Thames21.
Rivers and People 