Norwich Fringe Project

Norwich Fringe Project Managing our natural heritage & green spaces 🌿

The Norwich Fringe Project is a local authority funded countryside management partnership that makes natural conservation happen.

Last week, we were at Bowthorpe Southern Park to make a start on the construction of a cattle corral. For a long time, t...
08/06/2026

Last week, we were at Bowthorpe Southern Park to make a start on the construction of a cattle corral. For a long time, the site has been grazed by horses, but this year, we have made the change to cattle. As well as being very cute, these munching-machines will provide greater biodiversity benefits by encouraging more wildflowers and reducing overgrazing. To allow the grazier to move and manage his herd, our NFP volunteers have been parachuted in to construct a corral.

On Wednesday, we began by clearing vegetation to give ourselves working room, before measuring out and starting to dig the four-foot-deep holes required for our ten-foot posts – tough work in dry, rocky ground! After getting four posts set, we returned on Thursday to continue the job, managing to get a further four posts in the ground as well as hanging the corral’s three gates. We also repaired a section of stock fencing elsewhere on the site, as well as clearing vegetation away from a section of fence line. We will be back this week to carry on.

Norwich City Council

This Wednesday, we were at Cooper Wood to replace another section of ageing timber boardwalk with recycled plastic. As w...
28/05/2026

This Wednesday, we were at Cooper Wood to replace another section of ageing timber boardwalk with recycled plastic. As well as installing a new 3-metre stretch, we also spent some time pulling invasive Orange Balsam.

On Thursday, we were at Swardeston Common, where we gave the site’s footpaths a tidy, as well as digging up Ragwort on the upper common. The reason for removing Ragwort is its toxicity to livestock – at the end of each summer, the upper common is cut for hay to remove nutrients from the grassland and improve floral diversity. It was lovely to see Early Marsh Orchids showing well on the lower common.

Norwich City Council South Norfolk Council

This Wednesday, we were at Bunkers Hill Wood, part of West Earlham Woods, to give the site a spruce-up. Half of the team...
21/05/2026

This Wednesday, we were at Bunkers Hill Wood, part of West Earlham Woods, to give the site a spruce-up. Half of the team spent the day cutting the woodland footpaths, keeping them open and accessible. The other half, armed with pickers and bin bags, spread out through the woods looking for litter, which, unfortunately, was not too difficult to find. After finishing our cutting and filling the trailer with waste, our superstar volunteers headed home, leaving this precious woodland in a far better state for both wildlife and people.

On Thursday, the team rolled up to Three Score and Bowthorpe Marsh for some more path cutting action, setting off in all directions with mowers, brushcutters, hedgecutters and loppers. A couple of the crew also completed a fence repair out on the marsh. Top job everyone!

Norwich City Council

It’s been hossing it down this week in Norwich, but that didn’t stop our hardy volunteer team getting some path cutting ...
14/05/2026

It’s been hossing it down this week in Norwich, but that didn’t stop our hardy volunteer team getting some path cutting done. On Wednesday, it was Earlham Millenium Green, where we zipped around the pond and along the greenway with our mowers, brushcutters, hedgecutters and loppers. Then on Thursday, it was down to Marston Marshes for more of the same, tidying up the entrances, footpaths, kissing gates and benches. More path cutting adventures to come next week!

Norwich City Council

In 2025, as part of works to reinvigorate the ditch systems on Whitlingham Marsh, contractors installed three pipes with...
12/05/2026

In 2025, as part of works to reinvigorate the ditch systems on Whitlingham Marsh, contractors installed three pipes with u-bend collars to enable us to better control water levels. Last Wednesday, our volunteers were on site to construct wooden platforms over these collars, to enable us to safely adjust them without going for a swim! Whilst it was a very rainy day, the last couple of months have been extremely dry, so after building the platforms we turned the collars to re-wet some of the marsh’s smaller internal ditches We also cut the footpaths around the site to main accessibility and with that, it was time to head home and dry out.

On Thursday, we returned to Charter Wood for one final time to finish our clean-up and fence removal project undertaken over the past couple of months. A huge, heartfelt thank you to our magnificent NFP volunteer crew for all their hard work and positivity in undertaking this less-than-glamorous job, improving the site significantly for both visitors and wildlife. A big thank you also to local resident Paul Denny for helping with the tidy-up and being our eyes on the ground. Finally, thank you to Norwich City Services Ltd. for all their assistance with processing the sizeable amount of fly-tipping removed from the site.

Norwich City Council

Last Wednesday, we were at Cooper Wood to resume our boardwalk replacement project that we began last year. We are gradu...
05/05/2026

Last Wednesday, we were at Cooper Wood to resume our boardwalk replacement project that we began last year. We are gradually working to replace the ageing timber with recycled plastic to ensure this wonderful riverside site remains accessible long into the future. As well as working hard to remove and replace a 3-metre stretch of boardwalk, the team also made some temporary repairs to other sections, as well as brushcutting and mowing the footpaths around the site.

Then on Thursday, we were at Charter Wood to continue our fencing removal and general tidy-up of the site. Our brilliant volunteers grafted hard in hot conditions, filling our trailer to the brim with litter and fly-tipping, in addition to taking down another long section of dilapidated stock fencing. We will be back for our final visit later this week to finish the job.

Norwich City Council

This week, the team spent two days at Marston Marshes to carry out some emergency stock fencing work. A small herd of Be...
17/04/2026

This week, the team spent two days at Marston Marshes to carry out some emergency stock fencing work. A small herd of Belted Galloway cattle were recently put onto the marsh to graze it during the warmer months, a herd which includes three very tiny and adorable calves. However, do not be fooled, for these calves are extremely naughty and delight in sneaking through any small gaps in the site’s fencing. As such, we parachuted in the NFP volunteer crew to save the day, working their way around the perimeter of the field blocking up any calf-sized holes with wire or rails. Whilst we were at it, we also replaced a rotten strainer post and a wobbly gatepost. A huge thank you to our hard-working team for answering the call at short notice to get this job done and ensure our new little friends don’t go wandering.

Norwich City Council

Last Wednesday, the team were at Bowthorpe Southern Park with a very exciting mission – to plant two Black Poplar trees....
13/04/2026

Last Wednesday, the team were at Bowthorpe Southern Park with a very exciting mission – to plant two Black Poplar trees. Once a common sight, numbers of this long-lived tree have declined massively, in large part due to the drainage of wetlands for agriculture. There are now thought to be around only 7000 left in the UK, making it our rarest native tree species. We were therefore quick to accept when we were kindly offered two young trees that had been grown at Colney Hall, less than half a mile away from where we’d end up planting them on the bank of the River Yare. Once in the ground, we erected chestnut fencing to protect the trees from grazing animals and allow them to flourish, hopefully for centuries to come. Whilst on site, our super volunteer team also carried out stock fence repairs, tidied up some fly tipping and removed old tree guards from a planting area.

On Thursday, we were at Charter Wood to continue our tidy-up operation, taking down more old, redundant fencing and removing another trailer-load of fly-tipping and litter from the woods and grassland. Our super volunteers will be back in a couple of weeks to carry on the makeover.

Norwich City Council

This Wednesday, we were back at Marston Marshes to finish off our fencing project. Our final tasks were to add the top s...
02/04/2026

This Wednesday, we were back at Marston Marshes to finish off our fencing project. Our final tasks were to add the top strand of barbed wire, construct a section of post and rail and paint the newly replaced kissing gate, all completed just in time for today’s return of our grazing cattle!

Thursday saw us head to Charter Wood to begin a big tidy-up operation. The two horse paddocks to the south of the woodland are no longer grazed, so one of our tasks is taking down the dilapidated and now redundant stock fencing. Our other job is clearing litter and fly tipping from the fields and woodland. After a day’s work, the team had taken down over 300 metres of fencing and completely filled the truck and trailer with rubbish to be removed from the site. A huge shout out to our wonderful volunteers for undertaking this unglamorous but important work with enthusiasm and determination – superstars!

Norwich City Council

Merry Christmas from the Norwich Fringe Project!
18/12/2025

Merry Christmas from the Norwich Fringe Project!

Address

Norman Centre, Bignold Road
Norwich
NR32QZ

Opening Hours

Monday 8:30am - 5:30pm
Tuesday 8:30am - 5:30pm
Wednesday 8:30am - 5:30pm
Thursday 8:30am - 5:30pm
Friday 8:30am - 5:30pm

Telephone

+441603989311

Website

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