The first event to be held was a bulb planting session in November 2004, which was financed by donations from a group member and Gordon Rigg’s Nursery. Daffodils and Crocuses were planted on the village green and on verges around Old Town and Pecket Well. The group hit the headlines with their photo on the front page of the Hebden Bridge Times! We had many favorable comments from people in the Spring as the bulbs did brighten up the area. This year we have been successful in obtaining a grant of �300 from Calderdale Council to plant more bulbs and would like to involve as many people as possible in the scheme look out for details in the local press.

The next event was a Home Energy Day held in January. An advisor from Calderdale Council gave out free low energy light bulbs and information on saving energy in the home Around 70 people attended, and there were also games for the children and a cake stall organized by FOOTS.

The group also set about tackling the issue of dog dirt on the children’s playground at the village green and were successful in obtaining bins from Calderdale Council. We also organized a Spring tidy up of the parish, with soup and rolls served to volunteers in the Community Centre afterwards. It was amazing how many bin liners were filled! This is another event we hope to repeat in the Autumn, so why not come along and help us make Wadsworth a pleasanter place to live.

In June, some of the group joined Calder Future volunteers in an effort to control the invasive weed Himalayan Balsam, which is threatening native species of plants, especially along the waterways. We tackled the balsam along a stretch of Hebden Water near Victoria Road, and planted grass and wild flower seeds on the area that we had cleared.

We also think it is important to protect wild life sites within the parish. We are lucky in that most of the moorland in Wadsworth is protected as a SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest), because of its importance as a habitat for upland birds, some of which are in serious decline. Other sites do not receive such a high level of protection. When some of our members noticed that Wilcroft Dam, which used to feed Pecket Well Mill had twice been drained during building work work at the mill, they got in touch with Calderdale Planning Department, who made the developers aware of the dam’s importance for wildlife. We have also been in touch with Calderdale’s Conservation Officer and are continuing to monitor the dam.

We have some ideas for future projects, but would welcome imput from new members. Our aim is to involve as many people from Wadsworth as possible, so if you would like further information please go to the link below for our contacts page.