Eco friendly outdoor classroom at Greenwich Ecology Park one step closer to reality

The Land Trust is fundraising for a fabulous new outdoor classroom and pond dipping platform to inspire children and adults about wildlife, conservation and the environment and connect them with nature and the outdoors in London. We are delighted to announce that we have been awarded a grant for £20,000 from People’s Postcode Lottery towards the project and have also had planning approval granted for this exciting new facility.

Situated in the heart of Greenwich Millennium Village alongside the River Thames, Greenwich Peninsula Ecology Park is a beautiful urban oasis and green space which is home to a fascinating variety of wildlife.  The Park has been owned by national land management charity the Land Trust since 2011 and The Conservation Volunteers (TCV) manages the site on a day to day basis through two full time rangers, 2 Volunteer Officers and weekend volunteer Urban Rangers.  Activities already taking place at the Park include pond dipping, moth trapping, wildlife walks and urban park ranger volunteer training but as a popular environmental education site, we are currently at full capacity.

The new outdoor classroom will improve the existing educational facilities at the Park. It will be accessible for all, and has been designed to be as self-sufficient and carbon neutral as possible, providing its own electricity through renewable and low energy technologies.  It will have the capacity to accommodate up to 30 people and will be used by visiting schools from across London, allowing children to explore the wildlife and get close to nature.  It will also be used for community events, volunteer training and other activities, year round.  The new facility will play a vital part in providing education about wildlife and the importance of urban wildlife centres and will be a great example of real sustainability in cities, showing what can be done to improve urban life, for people and wildlife.

The grant from People’s Postcode Lottery will allow us to pursue this project but our fundraising campaign continues to allow us to carry out improvements at the park and provide even better opportunities for the local community and visitors from across London.  Anyone wishing to donate to this project can do so through https://www.justgiving.com/thelandtrust

If you’ve not already been down to experience the delights of this little urban oasis, why not pop down to Greenwich Ecology Park for some of our brilliant events over the summer!