Countryside Day 2024

CPRE Hertfordshire is holding an annual ‘Countryside Day’. We aim to bring our members, community groups, and the wider public together in celebration of the beautiful local countryside.

In October, Thomas Abel Smith kindly hosted our Countryside Day event at the Woodhall estate at Watton-at-Stone in East Hertfordshire. We were given a warm welcome and had an enjoyable and productive afternoon, with about 75 people in attendance.

One of our wonderful volunteers has made a video featuring highlights of the event, which you can watch here.

River Beane restoration project

A big highlight of the event was the guided walk on the estate to see the ongoing restoration of the River Beane. The Beane is one of Hertfordshire’s precious chalk streams. It flows through parkland at Woodhall and its habitats had become degraded through landscaping done in the 19^th century. Now, through restoration efforts, new river channels and a reedbed have been created. This enables a better flow of river water, allows fish to swim upstream, and ensures diverse wildlife habitats can thrive. The project is ongoing, and we hope to return in future when it’s complete.

Children’s art prize presentation

Another highlight of the afternoon was the prize presentation for our annual Children’s Art Competition. This year the theme was ‘Why I love the Hertfordshire countryside’ and we were delighted that a record number of primary schools participated in the competition. The standard of the artworks was very high and the judges had a difficult time selecting the winning entries. Elena Mannion, local publisher and author of children’s nature books The Happy Hedgerow, Old Oak and Little Acorn, and Old Oak and the Wild Flowers, presented the winners with their prizes.

Annual General Meeting

The business part of our event was our Annual General Meeting. Following a welcome from President Sir Simon Bowes-Lyon, CPRE Hertfordshire members were able to meet incoming Chairman Peter Waine and to thank outgoing Chairman Allan McNab who remains a Trustee. Other Trustees were (re)elected – Alison Young as Vice Chair, Steve Wiltshire as Treasurer, and Elizabeth Hamilton, Paul Harding, Adam Hopwood, and Kruna Vukmirovic as Trustees. Chief Executive Abby Coften gave a talk highlighting the work of the charity over the past year, and members then enjoyed refreshments of cakes and tea.

Plans for next year

Planning will commence for CPRE Hertfordshire’s 2025 Countryside Day early in the new year. We will share further information as soon as possible.

CPRE Hertfordshire is a long-standing local environmental charity, founded in 1928 and continuing to thrive thanks to the support of our many members. We are a membership charity and all are welcome to join – it’s easy and quick to join online.