Local environmental group Frodsham Root Network is in the process of registering as a social enterprise to help bring in more funding and conserve our community's natural environment.

An offshoot of Frodsham Transition Initiative, the Root Network aims to connect people wishing to protect, improve and create green spaces; harnessing the power of nature for a healthier, happier community.

Sian Day, charity worker and environmental enthusiast, is the brains behind this new project. She hopes to develop a network which will convert people's ideas into action, helping to optimise and conserve our precious outdoor spaces.

"What always happens across the charity sector is that you get groups of volunteers who are all doing really great stuff, but who often don't have the opportunity to talk to each other," Sian says.

"Our work is about building on the amazing stuff that's already happening, providing administrative support to individual groups that need it, connecting with landowners and finding the funding to make projects happen."

With organisations as diverse as Cheshire West Council, the Woodland Trust, the Canal & River Trust, Frodsham Town Council and smaller volunteer groups such as Hob Hey Wood Friends Group working across the town, Sian feels it necessary to create a central point of contact.

"For example, if a number of landowners were looking at a project with similar outcomes like improving footpaths or planting wildflowers for pollinators, they might all submit competing applications to the same funder.

"This means that some great projects could miss out on funding, just because they don't realise someone else is planning something similar to them."

One of the ambitions for the Root Network is to have a Green Space Plan for the town. This would involve mapping out all of the accessible green spaces, the community groups that are operating, the potential projects, the volunteer opportunities and the funding requirements.

"By working collaboratively across Frodsham and pooling our resources, we can get more done.", Sian says, "And that benefits everyone."

Sian hopes that social enterprise status will help Frodsham Root Network apply to a broader range of funders and build up resources for projects to support the natural environment.

Summer 2020 Survey

Keen to gather feedback about this initiative from as many local people as possible, Sian is encouraging Frodsham's residents to share their views about our green spaces.

She wants people to ask themselves: "What do we want our town to look like, and what kind of town do we want our children to grow up in?"

Since coronavirus-related restrictions came into force in March, many people have found solace in the outdoors, exploring their local environment during their daily exercise, as part of a socially-distanced meet-up with friends, or just to escape briefly from the inside of their houses.

Sian wants to know how this newfound interest in the natural world has manifested itself in Frodsham, and so she has launched a short survey for local residents to complete.

"Which green spaces are people using?" she asks. "Is everyone going to Frodsham Hill and the Marshes, or are people using parks and playing fields?

"Do people know about Marl Pits, Crowmere Lake and other places that are a bit further out of town? And if they aren't going out to green spaces, why is that?

"This survey is about understanding how people are using green spaces, and with that information, hopefully in future we can start to develop projects that meet local needs."

Sian hopes to gather as many responses as she can over an extended period of time, in order to observe how people's views and needs shift and develop.

Residents' feedback will then "inform project development and future funding applications," because "there is no point in doing something unless it's what people want."

Why is it important to conserve our local green spaces?

While discussing her plans for Frodsham Root Network, Sian stresses the universal nature of this project. She reminds us that our natural environment belongs to all of us, and that we can contribute to its upkeep without having an expert knowledge of local flora and fauna.

"You don't have to be a climate change activist to want to have a nice place to go for a walk," she says, observing that, when people have been involved in developing their local green spaces, they also become more invested in their local communities.

"Getting outside and making something together is an incredible bonding experience. And then people take pride in their environment and they want to see it well-used and maintained, because they've had a voice in that whole process, they've got a real stake in it."

"People who have more access to the natural environment tend to be healthier and happier. Spending time outside is something that has really helped me with my own mental health, and there is an increasingly extensive body of research that shows nature is good for us."

"We all know that, in our modern society, we sit down too much, so any opportunity to get out, get moving and get connected to nature is great for our physical health and our mental wellbeing."

"But if we don't know about these places, how can we protect them? How can we expect them to be here in 50 years' time?"

"People are becoming more aware of climate change, which is amazing, but it's not just about that. It's about preserving biodiversity, a range of wildlife and plants. We need our local ecosystem to survive, because if it collapses, eventually, we will collapse."

How has lockdown made a difference to the amount of time you've spent outdoors? Have you found any new places to go or have you found it hard to know where to start? Take the survey and have your say.

You can also find out more about the project on the Network Facebook page.