The Acres Project – Public Notice

11th November 2011

 Gnosall Parish Council is planning to commence major improvements to the area known as the Acres, situated between Brookhouse Road and the disused railwayline. The project is a partnership between the Parish Council, Gnosall Allotments Association, Environment Agency and Wildlife Trust.

If funding applications to the Environment Agency and LEADER Programme are approved at the end of November, work will start immediately to upgrade access across the Acres and enhance the wildlife value of the area along the Doley Brook.

This first stage of the project will involve work to the banks & channel of the brook to help restore its former profile. A number of small ponds will be created for wetland wildlife, including one also specially designed to trap silt before it enters the watercourse from the Hollies Brook. Much of the work aims to restore the role of the floodplain, though some of the excavated soil will be used to build a low bund to impede flooding to the allotments and electricity sub-station.

The planted hybrid-poplar trees along the brook are not native and have limited wildlife value. As part of the project, 50% of these will be removed in December and the remaining 50% felled the following winter. Native species such as willow and black poplar will be re-planted in the future.

The most ambitious part of the project will be the installation of a new boardwalk – made from UK recycled plastic. Most residents know how boggy the floodplain can get along the Doley Brook. The boardwalk will provide access from one side of the Acres to the other, whatever the conditions or weather. As part of the work, the metal culvert will be replaced by a new bridge and the boardwalk will include benches and dipping platforms.

Tree work will start in December with the main project commencing after Christmas. Weather permitting, operations should be completed by early February. As part of the work, there will be heavy earth-moving vehicles on site, a number of trees removed and the path across the brook temporarily closed. The Parish Council apologises for any inconvenience to our regular visitors during this period. It is likely the earth works will also look quite unsightly for several months and we ask for villager’s patience to allow time for landscaping to re-vegetate and become fully established.

Gnosall Parish Council will announce further details as soon as it learns of the decisions regarding funding. For further information about the Acres Regeneration Project, please visit the Parish Council website or contact the office.