THE future of the Golden Valley nature reserve in Wick hangs in the balance.
Residents are being urged to have their say about the popular wildlife haven, which has been maintained by South Gloucestershire Council for 20+ years.
The council says it can no longer manage the wooded site alongside the river Boyd following a change of ownership. It is seeking to have Golden Valley’s official status as a Local Nature Reserve removed.
It says its action is a last resort, after exploring all other options, and is carrying out a public consultation before applying to Natural England to de-declare the site.
In response to feedback, the Friends of Wick Golden Valley Nature Reserve group has agreed to explore the possibility of taking on the nature reserve but warns: “This would be a huge undertaking and would require the support of the whole community.”
For now, its priority is to ensure as many people from Wick and the surrounding area take part in the consultation, which can be found at https://wickgoldenvalley.commonplace.is/ The deadline for responses is midnight on July 14
The council has managed access to Golden Valley under an Access and Management agreement since 2005. It looked after rights of way and permissive paths and managed the trees, habitats and fencing, while the landowners were responsible for the ongoing upkeep of the industrial structures.
But the new owners are not willing to continue the partnership with the council.
The council says: “De-declaring Wick Golden Valley as a Nature Reserve is a process which the Council is pursuing only as a very last resort. We believe we have exhausted all options to maintain the area as an official Reserve.
“We have conducted technical assessments of the site and the industrial structures and concluded that the potential costs and liabilities of managing these buildings does not represent good value for money for taxpayers.
“We have engaged with the local parish council and several local and national nature-focused charitable organisations. None are interested in getting involved, either in partnership with the council or on their own.”
Following the council’s drop-in sessions in Wick about the proposals, the Friends group met to discuss the feedback. In a statement on its Facebook page, it said: “One of the frequent comments made was why can’t the Friends group or some other community group take on the ownership and running of the site?
“This is something the Friends have discussed and have decided to explore, however, this would be a huge undertaking and would require the support of the whole community.
“To take this forward the Friends are looking for people to step forward and join us. The objective would be for a focus group to explore the requirements of community ownership, looking at the legal and financial implications, what support and funding is available amongst other things.
“Whilst enthusiasm and time is a key requirement, the group would need people with specific skills e.g. legal, financial, leadership, marketing, fundraising and if possible knowledge of community groups.
“If you would like to get involved please email friendsofgoldenvalley@gmail.com
Whatever happens, people will still hbe able to get into the site, which proved a huge asset for people from across the area during the Covid lockdowns, via the two public rights of way across the land but access to other areas and permissive paths would be at the discretion of the landowners.