Welcome
Welcome on behalf of the Glow Worms and Water Voles of the Trap Grounds. Here you can discover what makes this patch of wilderness in suburban north Oxford so special, and why we campaigned all the way to the House of Lords to register it as a Town Green.
Click on the relevant pages to find a full list of the threatened and protected species that live on the site …the texts of the legal verdicts in the Public Inquiry, the High Court, the Court of Appeal, and the House of Lords … and details of how you can join The Friends Of The Trap Grounds and help to preserve six acres of reed bed and scrubland for conservation, recreation, and education.
The site lies between the canal and the railway line, immediately south of the Frenchay Road canal bridge (off Woodstock Road) at grid ref. SP 503081 (see map). An information board marks the entrance to the site, at the start of a track called Frog Lane.
Alan Allport’s photograph shows the pond in the Trap Grounds reed bed, created in the year 2000 with funds raised by the Friends of the Trap Grounds.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on February 19th, 2009.
Work Parties in the New Year
On Saturday 21st January a team from Oxford Conservation Volunteers will be working from 10 am to 4 pm, finishing the construction of the bird hide, creating refuges for reptiles and amphibians, trimming over-grown trees, and clearing brambles. We would welcome extra help, so please come along at any time during the day if you are free. There will tasks for all abilities. Tools and hot drinks will be provided, but please wear tough footwear and gardening gloves, and bring sandwiches if you are likely to be on site during the lunch break at around 1 pm. Rain will not deter us! Another all-day work party will be held on Saturday 3rd March.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on January 14th, 2012.
Work Parties in October and November
We have hired a tree surgeon to do some chain-saw work on the unsafe willows on the north bank of the big pond on Saturday 15th October.
We shall need help to drag logs out of the water (an opportunity to try out the waders that we’ve recently invested in) and to cut up smaller branches with bow saws. Tools will be provided, but please wear tough gloves and stout shoes or boots. Join us any time between 10 am and 1 pm. (We might also need some help in the afternoon, but before setting out please check by ringing me on 07879 488785.)
Filed by Catherine Robinson on October 10th, 2011.
After-School Environment Club
Children aged 8-11 from Phil & Jim School are enjoying a programme of activities on the Trap Grounds and Port Meadow on Friday afternoons, led by teacher Ms Rachel Woods. If you would like to help occasionally, between 3.15 pm and 4.45 pm, please contact the Secretary of the Friends of the Trap Grounds on 01865 511307. No expertise required: just a willingness to help the children use their eyes and ears, and record their findings in words and pictures. Zakkai and Conrad, two of the children, report: “On Friday 23 September we went to the Trap Grounds to learn how to recognise different trees from each other. We were led by a naturalist called Alan from ‘The Friends of the Trap Grounds’. He showed us different types of trees. Each type of tree bark looked, smelled, and felt different. We used paper and wax crayons to make bark and leaf rubbings. We enjoyed being surrounded by nature, and had lots of fun. We learned that all trees are very different in different ways. Look out for our next report.”
Filed by Catherine Robinson on October 2nd, 2011.
Work Parties on 8th and 15th October
On Saturday 8th October Oxford Conservation Volunteers will be helping us to construct a bird hide in the woodland and clear more brambles from the meadow. Come and join us any time from 10 am to 4 pm. Tools and hot drinks will be provided. Please wear gardening gloves and stout shoes or boots; and bring sandwiches for the lunch break. Rain will not deter us! On Saturday 15th October a tree surgeon will be doing some work on the willows by the big pond. We will need help to drag logs out of the water. Waders provided, but please wear tough gloves and stout shoes or boots. Join us any time from 10 am to 1 pm.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on October 2nd, 2011.
Work Party, Saturday 30 July 2011
If you can spare an hour between 2 pm and 4 pm on Saturday 30 July, please help us to pull up invasive plants of Goldenrod on the wild-flower meadow. No tools required - this is light and easy work - but please wear gardening gloves and stout footwear; also a sun hat and sun cream if appropriate.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on July 25th, 2011.
After-School Environment Club
Today (24 June 2011) saw the inaugural meeting of the After-School Environment Club at the primary school of St Philip & St James (on the southern boundary of the Trap Grounds). The club is led by teacher Ms Rachel Woods, who is keen to introduce children to the wildlife and habitats of the TG, encouraging them to use all their senses as they explore the site, and then to record and interpret what they experience. Today eleven children, two parents, and two Friends of the Trap Grounds focused on fruit, berries, and nuts: bramble, red currant, hawthorn, and cotoneaster; rose hips, crab apples, and hazel nuts. We enjoyed the scents of wild marjoram, meadowsweet, and honeysuckle, and the sounds of blackbirds and reed warblers. Best of all, the children found a Common Spotted Orchid (growing next to the boardwalk) and saw a deer in Frog Lane. It looked too big to be a muntjac, but I could not be sure. Asked to define a nature reserve, one of the children said: “It’s a place where wild creatures can feel safe.” We look forward to many more after-school excursions to the Trap Grounds as the seasons change.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on June 24th, 2011.
New Threat to the Trap Grounds
A small minority of local residents are campaigning for the City Council to create an entrance into the woodland from the end of Navigation Way. The Friends of the Trap Grounds are opposed to the proposal for the following reasons.
The Trap Grounds is a very small and vulnerable site. The number of visitors has increased dramatically since we began our regular maintenance work, and in the opinion of our environmental advisers the site has now reached the limit of what it can sustain in terms of visitor numbers without serious damage to the wildlife populations, in particular rare resident species such as Water Vole, Glow Worm, and Water Rail (not to mention the visiting Otter). (Click on ‘Wildlife’ above for a full list of all the mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and plants of the Trap Grounds.) …… The site was accorded Town Green status in the House of Lords on the basis of its recreational use for the enjoyment of wildlife, not for use as a thoroughfare. If the proposed gate is installed, the woodland will inevitably be used as a short cut to the Summertown shops by people living to the south, the numbers of casual visitors will greatly increase, and the whole purpose of the Town Green designation will be invalidated. …… An additional entrance from the south will lead to fly tipping and the dumping of green waste; encourage access by young people on bicycles and skateboards; increase the likelihood of anti-social activities such as drug dealing and all-night ‘raves’; and lead to pressure to open up a tarmac path across the site to link the Waterways estate with St Philip and St James Primary School. …… The head teacher of Phil & Jim School is opposed to the prospect of an open gate so close to the school entrance, allowing unsupervised children access to deep water and other dangers. …… For anyone seriously interested in observing wildlife on the Trap Grounds, there is perfectly good access along Frog Lane, reached by a pleasant three- or four-minute walk northwards along the canal towpath from Aristotle Lane. …… For people who want to take their children to let off steam, or their dog to do a poo, there are three alternative sites very close by: Aristotle Lane Recreation Ground, Port Meadow, and Burgess Field. If the city council has money to spend on local recreation facilities, the cash would be better spent on improving the Aristotle Lane recreation ground. …… There is no need for vehicular access from Navigation Way, because maintenance machinery can be brought on to the site via Frog Lane (as demonstrated by our deployment of a one-ton digger and a one-ton crusher without difficulty on 5 February this year). …… We are accused by a small minority of local residents of wanting to manage the Trap Grounds as a private nature reserve. But we have worked hard in the past ten years to improve access by creating paths and glades, and installing a boardwalk for wheelchair users and young families. We regularly organise appropriate activities such as our annual May Morning Birdsong Walk, and Bats and Glow-Worms Expeditions; but the woodland is a very small and sensitive area (only three acres in all), and it cannot sustain the disturbance that would be created by large numbers of casual users.
The city council is proposing to conduct a ‘community consultation’ to assess the level of support for the proposed new gate. We appeal to everyone who cares about the survival of this rare patch of wilderness and its wildlife population to vote against the proposal. To join the Friends of the Trap Grounds and help to fund our work, please click on the link to ‘The Friends’ (above).
Filed by Catherine Robinson on April 16th, 2011.
May Morning Bird-Song Walk
Join us on Sunday 1st May at 7 am on the canal bridge in Aristotle Lane for a one-hour guided walk around the Trap Grounds, led by a local bird-enthusiast. All welcome (but please no dogs on this occasion).
Filed by Catherine Robinson on April 16th, 2011.
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 2011
Our Annual General Meeting will be held on Tuesday 29th March at 7.45 pm in St Margaret’s Institute, Polstead Road, north Oxford. A short business meeting will be followed by refreshments and an illustrated talk by Rumi Mohideen about the Return of Otters to the Oxford Canal. Members and non-members will all be welcome.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on February 23rd, 2011.
RUBBISH BLITZ and BRAMBLE BLITZ
As part of the annual Oxford SpringClean weekend, we are planning a Big Rubbish Blitz on the Trap Grounds on Saturday 5th March. Volunteers will be welcome to join us any time between 10 and 4 pm. It has taken us nearly ten years to clean up this former rubbish tip. One last push on 5th March might finish the job. If you don’t want to drag old car tyres out of the swamp, please help us to clear brambles from the wildflower meadow. In eithe rcase, tools will be provided, but please wear boots and thick gloves, and bring sandwiches for the lunch-break if you will be on site at around 1 pm. Hot drinks will be provided. Rain will not deter us.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on February 23rd, 2011.
The Boardwalk: Good News!
The boardwalk is complete! Leading south from Frog Lane, alongside the stream and across the swamp, it is 120 metres long and made of environment-friendly recycled plastic boards which are vandal-proof, non-slip, and rot-resistant. The plastic planks are not only more durable than wood: they are also more flexible, enabling the boardwalk to bend around corners, so that it winds its way through the trees in a very pleasing manner.
The boardwalk has improved access for everyone, but particularly wheelchair-users and families with pushchairs. School children and their teachers will benefit too.
The materials were supplied by Filcris Ltd (www.filcris.co.uk). Stuart Cox, of Bright Frog Designs (www.brightfrog.co.uk), was responsible for the installation. The cost was subsidised by generous grants from the National Lottery Awards For All scheme and The Trust For Oxfordshire’s Environment. Our own supporters made up the difference – thank you, everyone!
Our next project is to extend the boardwalk by constructing a path through the wood, leading to a viewing platform overlooking a small reedbed, where we hope to create a small pond. Watch this space!
Filed by Catherine Robinson on October 5th, 2010.
Friday 9th July 2010: Bats and Glow Worms
An illustrated, interactive talk at St Margaret’s Institute in Polstead Road at 8 pm, followed by an expedition to the Trap Grounds at 9.30 pm. Children (aged 7+) welcome. Admission free, but donations to the work of the Oxfordshire Bat Group would be welcomed. If going on the guided walk, please bring a torch, and take precautions against midges. Information from Catherine Robinson, tel. 01865 511307.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on June 29th, 2010.
Summer 2010
Sunday 27 June: Oxford Green Spaces Sponsored Circular Walk: 10.00 am – 4.00 pm. A nine-mile walk created by the Oxford City branch of the Campaign to Protect Rural England, with help from the Ramblers, to highlight the threats to some of the city’s much-loved green spaces. The walk will stretch from the Trap Grounds, which achieved Town Green status in 2006, along the canal and Mill Stream to the Oxpens Meadow, then through green spaces eastwards up to the Warneford Meadow and along unsuspected green stretches back to the Trap Grounds. At each of the three sites there will be children’s activities and information stalls. The funds raised will help to pay the legal costs of Town Green claims by the Friends of Warneford Meadow and the Friends of Oxpens Meadow, and will also support the work of CPRE City District. For more information, a sponsorship form and route map, please contact Becky Crockett on 01865 874780 or by email at campaign@cpreoxon.org.uk or go to the CPRE website: www.cpreoxon.org.uk
Friday 9 July: Bats and Glow-Worms: a talk at St Margaret’s Institute in Polstead Road at 8 pm, followed by an expedition to the Trap Grounds at 9.45 pm. Children welcome. Bring a torch, and take precautions against midges. Information from Catherine Robinson, tel. 01865 511307.
Sunday 25 July: Work Party: 10 am – 4 pm, clearing brambles and Golden Rod, creating paths, preparing the meadow for mowing, etc. (with the help of Oxford Conservation Volunteers). Come when you like, for as long as you like. Tools provided; please wear boots and gardening gloves.
Saturday 18 September: Work Party: 10 am – 4 pm, clearing brambles, creating paths, raking the meadow, etc. (with the help of Oxford Conservation Volunteers. Come when you like, for as long as you like. Tools provided; wear boots and gardening gloves.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on June 6th, 2010.
May Morning Bird-Song Walk 2010
Saturday 1st May 2010: join us at 7 am on the canal bridge at Aristotle Lane for a guided walk round the Trap Grounds, led by a local bird-enthusiast. All welcome (but please no dogs on this occasion).
Filed by Catherine Robinson on April 23rd, 2010.
Spring 2010
Snowdrops are flowering on the bank of the stream, hazel catkins are waving in the wind in the woodland, and we have planned a busy programme of activities for the Spring:
Boardwalk for wheelchairs alongside the stream: the contractor has started work and hopes to complete the installation by Easter.
Rubbish Blitz: Saturday 6 March, 10 am to 12 noon. We need all the help we can get! Meet us on the Frenchay Road canal bridge just before 10 am, or come along and find us in the woodland later. Wear boots and thick gloves, and please bring a wheelbarrow if you can. Children under 12 welcome if accompanied by an adult.
Bramble Blitz and Path Clearance: Sunday 21 March, 10 am to 4 pm. Volunteers needed! Come for an hour or come for the whole day - whatever you like. Wear boots and thick gloves, and bring a wheelbarrow if you can. We shall stop for lunch at about 1 pm. Hot drinks provided; bring your own sandwiches.
Annual General Meeting: Tuesday 23 March, 7.30 pm, St Margaret’s Institute, Polstead Road, north Oxford. Short reports and a presentation of future plans will be followed by refreshments and an illustrated talk by Diane Wilson: ‘Wildlife In My Garden’, featuring foxes and badgers (sometimes on the same slide!).
May Morning Bird-Song: a guided walk led by an ornithologist on Saturday 1 May, starting at 7 am. Meet us on the canal bridge at Aristotle Lane.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on March 3rd, 2010.
Funding for the boardwalk
We have been awarded £15,000 by the Trust for Oxfordshire’s Environment and £5,000 by the national Lottery Awards For All scheme towards the total cost (£22,500) of a walkway (made of recycled materials) alongside the stream. The main objective is to improve access for wheelchairs, but families with buggies will also benefit, as will everyone when conditions are muddy. It is hoped that a specialist contractor will begin installing the boardwalk in mid-January 2010.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on November 25th, 2009.
Bramble Blitz, Saturday 14 November 2009
The never-ending war on brambles will continue on Saturday 14 November, with the help of a team from Oxford Conservation Volunteers. They will be working on site from 10 am to 4 pm. We’d be very pleased to welcome local supporters for an hour or two during that time. As well as up-rooting brambles, we will be clearing rubbish, lopping branches, and widening paths. Tools will be provided, but please bring gardening gloves if you have them, and a wheelbarrow if you can. We shall stop for a quick sandwich lunch (please bring your own) at about 1 pm. Hot drinks will be provided. Please meet us on the Frenchay Road canal bridge at 10 am, or come and find us in the woodland later. Contact 01865 511307 for further details.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on November 3rd, 2009.
National Moth Night, Saturday 19 September 2009
Martin Townsend, BSc, FRES, Consultant Ecologist and County Moth Recorder, will be trapping and identifying moths on the Trap Grounds on Saturday 19 September, starting at 7.30 pm. Many beautiful and interesting specimens have been recorded on the TG, including the Emperor Moth … Drinker Moth … Cream Wave … Dwarf Cream Wave … Silver-ground Carpet … Red-green Carpet … Magpie … Clouded Border … White Satin …Round-winged Muslin … Scarlet Tiger … Cinnabar … Smoky Wainscot … Beautiful Hook-tip … and the rare Buttoned Snout. We hope to find all these and some new ones besides.
All welcome. Please ring 01865 511307 if you would like to join us.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on September 12th, 2009.
Waterways Community Event, 12 September 2009
Come and visit our information stall at the Waterways Community Event (alongside the canal at the far end of Frenchay Road), any time from 11 am to 2 pm. Join us at 2 pm at the information stall for a guided walk round the Trap Grounds. All welcome. No need to book.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on September 4th, 2009.
Bat Boxes
A team from Oxford Conservation Volunteers have helped us to fix 11 bat boxes in the willow trees alongside the Trap Grounds stream, overlooking the reedbed and the pond. We are grateful to the Walton Manor branch of the Women’s Institute for kindly contributing the cost of the boxes, which were made by Mr Stan Smith (aged 87), whose shed was equipped with a lathe and other tools by St Dunstan’s, an organisation for blind ex-service people. We hope that the Pipistrelle and Noctule bats that hunt for insects over the Trap Grounds pond will soon discover the boxes and start roosting in them.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on July 21st, 2009.
Conservation Work Party, Sunday 19 July 2009
Canadian Golden Rod has invaded the meadow and is suppressing the growth of wildflowers. The good news is that Golden Rod is easy to up-root at this time of the year. Can you spare an hour (or two) to help us on Sunday 19 July, any time between 10 am and 4 pm? We shall stop for half an hour at about 1 pm for a sandwich lunch (please bring your own). Wear gardening gloves and stout shoes. Children welcome, if accompanied by an adult. For anyone seeking a tougher challenge, the never-ending war on brambles will be resumed on the same day. Tools will be provided. Ring 01865 511307 for further information.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on June 6th, 2009.
Woodland Art Display, 8-17 May 2009
Come to the Trap Grounds woodland to see artwork made of wood and willow by environmental artist David Gosling and the children of St Philip and St James Primary School. A giant moth, a unicorn, an owl, and a mysterious egg are among the creatures that await you in the glade. Join us at the launch of the display on Friday 8 May at 3.30 pm, or come and see for yourself at any time after that between 12 and 5 pm during Oxford Arts Week until Sunday 17 May. If you come on the afternoons of Saturday 9th or Saturday 16th, you can try your hand at making your own objects out of natural materials found in the wood, helped by the artist. Follow the signs along Frog Lane from the canal towpath, just south of the Frenchay Road bridge. This project is funded by an award from the Lottery Grants for Local Groups scheme.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on April 28th, 2009.
Community Activity Day, Saturday 25 April 2009
Come along at any time between 11 am and 5 pm to watch the environmental artist David Gosling at work in the Trap Grounds wood. David and other artists will be on hand to help visitors to make their own objects out of willow and other natural materials, inspired by the sights and sounds of Spring in the Trap Grounds. Take your work home - or leave it in the glade for others to enjoy. Children welcome. This event is sponsored by the Lottery Grants for Local Groups scheme. Admission is free of charge. There will be refreshments and an information stall.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on April 15th, 2009.
Bramble Blitz, Saturday 28 February 2009
The war on invasive brambles continues today, 10 am to 12.30 pm. Our efforts last year were rewarded by the re-appearance of Bee Orchids, Pyramidal Orchids, and wild Marjoram - not to mention 20 glow worms. Please help us to extend the wildflower meadow. Meet us on the Frenchay Road canal bridge just before 10 am, or come and find us later on. Wear boots and thick gloves. Some tools provided, but please bring your own garden fork, rake, Dutch hoe, loppers, wheelbarrow, etc. if you can. Children aged 8+ are welcome to help, if supervised by a responsible adult. (Updated Weds 25-Feb-2009)
Filed by Catherine Robinson on February 25th, 2009.
Rubbish Blitz, Saturday 7 March 2009
We need all the help we can get! Please meet us on the Frenchay Road canal bridge just before 10 am, or come and find us later on. Wear boots and protective gloves, and bring a wheelbarrow if you can. (We can provide gloves if necessary.) Children aged 8+ are welcome to take part, if they are supervised by a responsible adult. This task is organised as part of the city-wide OxClean project.
Filed by Catherine Robinson on February 24th, 2009.
AGM, Tuesday 17 March 2009
Annual General Meeting of The Friends Of The Trap Grounds, 7.30 pm at St Margaret’s Institute, Polstead Road. A short business meeting will be followed by refreshments and an illustrated talk by Alan Allport about the wildlife of the Trap Grounds. All welcome. Come and hear about our achievements during the past year and our plans for the next 12 months. Be amazed by Alan’s close-up photographs!