Wild Child sessions - Walden Countryside's contribution to the Uttlesford Green Festival

At primary school? Come to Noakes Grove and Go Wild

Sunday 7th June or Saturday 13th June

10 am - 12 noon

Some places are still available - request a booking by email:

david@walden-countryside.co.uk

Wild Child sessions at Noakes Grove give youngsters a chance to see wildlife up close, maybe mice and voles in catch-alive traps, pond-dipping for newts, searching trees and shrubs for insects or butterfly safaris.

Parents often want to stay with their child but don't have to. If parents do stay it is important that the children can actually "Go Wild" exploring the reserve with the other children, without close parental supervision.

These two-hour sessions are for children who attend primary school. They are similar to those regular sessions we run once every two weeks for home-educated members of our Wild Child Club.

Booking is essential as there is a limit of 12 children for each day - Sunday 7th June and Saturday 13th June. The sessions start at 10 am at Noakes Grove (search Noakes Grove on Google Maps or What 3 Words dolly.provider.stunts ).

To request a booking please email: david@walden-countryside.co.uk giving the date for which you would like a booking, your name and phone number plus the names and ages of the child/children for whom you request a booking.

Noakes Grove is an 9 acre nature reserve with flower-rich grassland grazed by sheep, a block of ancient woodland and an area of shrub land to be explored on secret paths.

To learn more about Noakes Grove or the Wild Child Club click a link

Flowers Despite the very dry weather at least the common wild flowers (like the Ox-eye Daisies) are doing fairly well. All three of our reserves have colourful displays (except the fenced areas where the sheep are grazing and which should have their own flower show later in summer when the sheep have moved to pastures new and more rain has fallen). Two exciting new flowers are now out at Ellis Green Common (just outside our Scotch Patch orchard nature reserve in the Ellis Green Local Wildlife Site now under the care of the Parish Council). Stinking Iris Stinking Iris is not as nasty as it sounds although it is also called Roast Beef plant as it is said to smell like a medieval meat dish (made with somewhat rotten meat). It also has a more pleasant name: Gladdon. Yellow Rattle The longer grass in the main part of the common has a good showing of Yellow Rattle - once a common plant it is now rare, except in tradionally managed pastures and meadows. The Ellis Green rattles were re-introduced by the parish council a couple of years ago. Yellow Rattle is an annual plant so this year's flowers must have self-sown from a previous generation. A successful bit of rewilding.
	Stinking Iris (above) Yellow Rattle (below)
Work Party at Kings Field Sunday 21st June Tea/Coffee/Biscuits. Bring your own lunch 10am to 3pm - come when you like This month's tasks relate to installing guttering on two sheds and linking it to water butts. This will reduce the amount of work that presently goes into carrying water for the sheep to the reserve. Our work parties do a marvellous job of habitat management work, maintaining a great variety of wildflower grasslands and wildlife rich woodland, scrub and paths. Would you like to be added to our Work Party WhatsApp group? You would get full details of the planned work and any last-minute information. Contact via WhatsApp - 07 583 076 790
Copyright 2026 Organic Countryside Community Interest Company Trading as Walden Countryside Company number 06794848 - registered in England VAT No: 947 3003 31 23 Tye Green, Wimbish CB10 2XE 01799 599 376 Updated 3 June 2026