Hollingbourne Meadows Trust

Hollingbourne Meadows Trust ln November 2004, the land above the High Speed Rail tunnel ( on both sides of the road into the Village ) was put up for auction.

There was great concern that this very visible land at the entrance to the village might be put to inappropriate or insensitive use. Ben Williams, Peter Lee and Jim Findley made an appeal to the Village for funds to buy the land. 70 residents pledged a total of £48,000. Eyhorne Meadow was brought for £22,, using 50% of the amounts pledged. The other piece of land, Cotuams Meadow, was brought by a

Village resident. The Hollingbourne Meadows Trust Ltd was incorporated in November 2004. In may 2005, registered charitable status was granted by the Charity Commission. The objects of the Trust are to regenerate, improve and Maintain Eyhorne Meadow and to:

* Conserve, protect and improve the physical and natural environment of Hollingbourne

* promote natural biodiversity

* promote recreational facilities in the form of nature trails, walkways and footpaths, and in a manner facilitating access by the young, the elderly, the infirm and the disabled. In the first five years of the Trust's life, efforts were concentrated on the regeneration of Eyhorne Meadow. During this period we planted approximately 90 trees with protective fencing, and grazed a succession of livestock, including bullocks and sheep. Fencing has been improved, weeds eradicated or controlled, and kissing gates installed to improve access to the land
In 2010 there was a change in ownership of Grove Mill Estate to the east of the village, and individual fields or parts of fields were offered for sale at auction. The Village was faced with the likelihood of piecemeal ownership of the land, and the possibility of undesirable or inappropriate use. Fencing of individual holdings was likely, restricting access to the land. In the course of 18 months of intense activity by the Trust, it's Directors, Supporters and Friends, and thanks to generous donations from individual vVllagers, from The Hollingbourne Society and many other Village Organisations, from past residents and from friends, and to grants from national organisations, including the Big Lottery Fund, the Trust raised a total of £140.000. We borrowed £10.000 on a short-term loan, and spent £147.000 in buying 15 acres of land. A further 10 acres were brought by supportive residents, who have given the Trust the responsibility for managing their land. These 10 acres are available for the Trust to buy-at a cost of about £80.000, being the price paid by the supporters. If the 10 acres can be brought by the Trust, the whole of the eastern boundary of the Village from the High Speed CTRL to the "old" railway line at Culpeper will be safely held protected from development, and will provide a wildlife haven and walking area for the Village. Raising £80.000 for these purchases is a hugely-challenging medium-term objective of the Trust
The Trust has kept the Grove Mill land available for the Village to walk and enjoy. We have:

* planted trees

* created a flower meadow

* maintained cut grass paths ( which have increased the number of walkers enjoying the meadows )

* commenced cyclical hedge-trimming on a three year cycle. We shall need lots of volunteers help, and we have set up " Ben's Meadows Volunteers " with a growing list of potential helpers. All welcome to help in any way they can. We have outline plans over the longer term, but need to concentrate on the matters in hand, and particularly upon continued fund-raising. although much is given freely by our Directors and by our volunteers, our insurance and other over heads, the regular cutting of the grass pathways, hedge trimming and general maintenance cost in the region of £3.000 a year. Every year, we need to raise that amount, plus some more to provide for the cost of buying the 10 acres which we do not own.

31/08/2026

Country Notes for September 2026

The last few weeks of summer are upon us, with autumn beginning this year on 22nd September, and it has been quite a remarkable summer. We have experienced a very prolonged dry spell, with little rain all summer and long periods without any rain at all. The country is officially in drought and there have been numerous official heatwaves. This has certainly had a detrimental effect on our gardens and farms, not to mention the wildlife. Birds and animals have been struggling to find water with so many streams dried up and plant life has struggled with parched, rock solid, land.
There is always good and bad however. It has been a good year for butterflies, with large numbers of painted ladys from early on. Meadow browns, gatekeepers and red admirals, to name just a few, have done very well. There was a rare clouded yellow butterfly in Hollingbourne for several weeks and I even had a continental swallowtail in my garden, which was a real first! My garden has witnessed almost daily appearances of hummingbird hawk moths, and I know that I am not the only one. However, bees have really struggled, as they are unable to survive in some of the temperatures we have seen in the past few weeks. There have certainly been fewer and fewer in my garden as time has gone by.
Earlier in the year I wrote about the very few house martins in our villages compared with the large numbers we used to welcome. The good news is that there were definitely more nesting in our villages than there have been for some time. Thank you if you welcomed a nest under your eaves this year and, hopefully, the number will continue to increase next year. There were also good numbers of nightingales nesting in our area.
Let’s hope too that, as we move into the last few days of summer and enter autumn, the weather will become more typical for the time of year and that next summer we don’t experience such extremes.
Andrew Snowdon

With the excessive heat we are experiencing and the ground being so dry, please extra take care on the meadows and ensur...
14/08/2026

With the excessive heat we are experiencing and the ground being so dry, please extra take care on the meadows and ensure any ci******es are carefully disposed of…many thanks 🙏 🌳

2 lovely sunset pictures taken last night by Nick Turk, thanks Nick
05/08/2026

2 lovely sunset pictures taken last night by Nick Turk, thanks Nick

03/08/2026

Thank you for displaying these beautiful pieces of artwork 🌺🌳

31/07/2026

Country Notes for August 2026
As I write this in the midst of a prolonged heatwave, with temperatures that have sometimes been quite challenging, it is good to report that it has, so far, been quite a good year for butterflies. There are good numbers of meadow browns, gatekeepers and marbled whites, to name just a few. There have also been plenty of sightings of day flying moths, including burnets and cinnabars.
The most exciting of the day flying moths however is the hummingbird hawk moth. I have already had several visits in my garden where they seem to favour the lavender, and there have been plenty of other reports in the area. These moths are extraordinary and it is no surprise that some people really do think that they have spotted a hummingbird when they see them.
They hover in front of the flower on which they are feeding with wing beats between 70 and 85 times a second, which is quite extraordinary! Whilst doing so their long proboscis feels inside each flower to collect the nectar. They move amazingly fast and quite suddenly and when they fly off they are gone in a flash.
I always get very excited when I see one in my garden, especially if it is the first one of the year. They come from southern Europe and are particularly noticeable in warm summers when the air flow is from the south. However, with climate change there is some evidence that they are breeding here and overwintering. The numbers being seen certainly seem to back this up.
They are essentially various shades of brown but with a distinctive black and white abdomen. Their hind wings also provide a flash of orange.
If you see something whizz into your garden and then hover in front of nectar rich flowers it will undoubtedly be a hummingbird hawk moth!
Andrew Snowdon

Lovely Misha enjoying the early morning sunshine.Thank-you Sue for sending them over
23/07/2026

Lovely Misha enjoying the early morning sunshine.
Thank-you Sue for sending them over

We love seeing your images taken of the meadows in all its glory, thanks for sharing Debbie Cooper 🌳
20/07/2026

We love seeing your images taken of the meadows in all its glory, thanks for sharing Debbie Cooper 🌳

20/07/2026
Great News – The Hollingbourne Meadows Trust is Growing 🌳We are delighted to announce that the Hollingbourne Meadows Tru...
19/07/2026

Great News – The Hollingbourne Meadows Trust is Growing 🌳

We are delighted to announce that the Hollingbourne Meadows Trust has been entrusted with the management of a new 7-acre site at the LOC8 Industrial Park, just off Junction 8 of the M20.

The transfer of land has taken place as part of a Maidstone Borough Council Section 106 (S106) agreement, through which developers provide measures to help offset the impact of new developments on the local community.

The land was originally offered to the Parish Council, but it was quickly recognised that the Hollingbourne Meadows Trust was ideally placed to take on its management, thanks to more than 21 years of experience caring and managing over 35 acres of green spaces around the village.

This marks an exciting new chapter for the Trust and provides another wonderful opportunity to protect and enhance local habitats and increase biodiversity for the benefit of both wildlife and the wider community.

The developers have already planted the site with hundreds of young woodland saplings, giving us a fantastic head start. However, there is still plenty to do. Over the coming months and years, we will be organising volunteer work parties to remove litter, clear any remaining building debris, and help the site establish as a thriving woodland. We'd be delighted to welcome anyone who can spare a few hours to lend a hand.

Later this year, we'll also be replacing the saplings that didn't survive and applying mulch around the young trees to help them retain moisture and cope with the increasingly dry summers we've been experiencing.

While the site won't be open for general public access, we hope to host occasional guided visits and talks so that members of the community can see the progress being made, learn about the wildlife the site will support, and share in this exciting journey with us.

This is a fantastic opportunity for Hollingbourne Meadows Trust, and we're looking forward to transforming this new site into a flourishing woodland that will benefit wildlife and future generations for years to come.

Address

Hollingbourne
Maidstone
ME171UA

Telephone

+447968123165

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