We need your help to raise £2,522 by the 31st December to unlock vital funding to carry out a restoration project on our Crabtree Ponds reserve.
Crabtree Ponds nature reserve is a hidden gem, providing a much-needed green space for the community and wildlife in a very urban area of Burngreave. Formerly an ornamental pond in the formal gardens for the old Crabtree Lodge, this site consists of a large expanse of standing water, abundant with aquatic life. Several species of local biodiversity priorities, such as hawker dragonflies, smooth and palmate newt, frogs and toads can also be found here, as well as being an important habitat for hedgehogs. Pipistrelle, Daubenton’s and Leisler’s bats feed on insects from the ponds, while the woods are home to a host of birdlife, including treecreepers, woodpeckers and wrens.
Despite being in the centre of a very urban area and surrounded by busy roads, Crabtree Ponds is an amazingly quiet and tranquil place, essential for both the well-being of the community and the wildlife that depends on it, especially during the pandemic.
“As a local resident living very near to Crabtree Ponds nature reserve, I am able to enjoy a pocket of the natural world in the centre of a busy city. Consequently, I support the work of Sheffield and Rotherham Wildlife Trust in their endeavours to manage Crabtree Ponds for the benefit of the wildlife and the local community.”
To continue to care for, improve and protect this wonderful nature reserve, we have applied for a grant to restore the pond boardwalk, create interpretation panels for visitors, and install tall metal fencing to increase the height of the reserve boundary by the roadside.
The estimated cost to carry out the project is £35,775. The Trust will provide around £5,000 of this and the Landfill Communities Funder Veolia Environmental Trust has approved a request for a grant of £30,220 to fund the remainder.
And this is where we need your help. In order to access the funding from Veolia Environmental Trust, we have to pay a 10% Third Party Contribution to the Landfill Operator Veolia ES (UK) Limited – £3,022 – and we aren’t allowed to use the Trust’s own funds or that of the contractors who will carry out the work. We have to be able to prove that the funds have been raised specifically for this purpose.
But to unlock the Veoilia funding, we urgently need to raise an additional £2,522 as their offer will expire within a few weeks. So far we have gratefully received a very generous anonymous pledge of £500 towards this amount.
Are you able to help? We would be so grateful if you could make a contribution to help us find the Third Party Contribution; every £1 you can give will secure £11.36 of funding for work to protect wildlife habitats and improve the visitor experience to Crabtree Ponds. So every £1 will truly make a difference to the future of this reserve.
You can donate below or send a cheque payable to Sheffield and Rotherham Wildlife Trust.
If you are at all able to make a donation, we would be really grateful if you could mark your donation ‘Crabtree Ponds improvements’ so we can demonstrate to the funder that it is your intention to support this project. Your contribution will be collected by Sheffield and Rotherham Wildlife Trust to be paid to a Veolia ES (UK) Ltd in order to release Landfill Communities Fund monies for the Crabtree Ponds improvement project undertaken by Sheffield and Rotherham Wildlife Trust. As such, your contribution is not eligible for Gift Aid.
If we end up raising more than the £2,522, we will ensure that additional funds will be used to continue to care for and protect our other nature reserves.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this and thank you very much for your support for local wildlife across Sheffield and Rotherham Wildlife Trust.