The right tools for the job!

Awarded £898 in July 2024

The Vale Path Volunteers (VPV) are the unsung heroes who keep footpaths in the Vale of White Horse clear so that the public can enjoy wandering the countryside. The footpath maintenance team of the Vale of White Horse Ramblers Group, they work across the District. 

Their patch stretches from Kennington, Abingdon, Kingston Bagpuize and Faringdon in the north and west to Wantage, the Hendreds, Grove and the villages as far south as the Ridgeway.

August 2024 saw their first work party using new tools purchased after a successful application for a Small Grant from TOE’s Local Environment Fund. The hard working volunteers cleared paths at Boars Hill, Sunningwell.

The heavy petrol-driven long-handled hedgecutter was proving problematic so their grant enabled them to replace it with a lighter, greener battery-driven hedgecutter for mid-level trimming. They also purchased a manual lightweight telescopic pruner for higher tree branches, and a robust pruning saw for thick stems. Another benefit of these new tools is that they can be carried by three different volunteers, making it more comfortable than their older hedgecutter for getting to and from the work along footpaths.

The new tools, in combination with the VPV’s existing ones, were extremely effective in restoring the Sunningwell footpath to provide a wide, scratch-free route along Boars Hill, with its lovely views over the surrounding countryside.

Hinksey Trail regeneration

Three grants since 2020 totalling £21,622

During the first Covid lockdown many people discovered lovely places close to home and the Hinksey Heights Nature Trail on the west side of Oxford was one of these previously little-known gems. The nature trail winds along a wooden valley through which a stream flows, bordered by a rare alkaline fen making it a hotspot for wildlife.

At the start, the team of volunteers aimed to relieve winter flooding on parts of the trail and replace sections of dilapidated boardwalk. Thanks to the grants from TOE and other sources including crowd-funding, much of this has been successfully completed. Although the team are following a policy of gradual replacement of unnecessary boardwalk stretches with sustainable surface treatments, significant lengths of path across wetland areas will need to be traversed via boardwalk sections.    

Grants fund the materials and all the practical work is carried out by the volunteers. They believe the key to their success has been ensuring that all volunteers are updated in real time with images of the work that has been completed, enabling everyone to share the achievements of individual work parties.  

They also recommend that all local groups build in social time to a work-party day (ie a drink and chips in the pub afterwards!) to build volunteer cohesion and loyalty to the project.

Our visit to the trail in April 2024

In April 2024, we took a trip to Hinkey Heights to check in on the progress of the boardwalk restoration, as well as the nature regeneration taking pace in the beautiful surrounding woodlands and waterways.

A volunteer, Mark, kindly gave us a tour of the trail. He shared that the volunteers had used the grants to buy new, more durable material for the boardwalks to ensure accessibility and safety for all who wish to enjoy its hidden magic. This durable material also ensures that the boardwalks won’t need replacing again for a considerable amount of time, limiting the use of resources.

Mark also explained how volunteers are working to restore large areas of alkaline fen; a distinctive habitat with a short, open structure made up of low-growing grasses, rushes and sedges, and a diversity of wetland wildflowers, growing over mats of colourful mosses. This vegetation greatly aids in absorbing excess water, and therefore acts as an excellent natural flood defence system. This is greatly needed in this part of Oxfordshire, which is particularly prone to flooding. Read more about this here.

Thank you to Hinksey Heights Nature Trail for having us!

Cuttlebrook Footbridge

Grant of £5,000, awarded in 2013

Thame’s Cuttlebrook Nature Reserve provides a valuable green space in the town, somewhere for local people to enjoy and wildlife to thrive. 

The grant from TOE funded the materials for a sturdy new footbridge, designed and built by local volunteers, which is accessible to all and improves links with local rights of way. 

South Chilterns Path Maintenance Volunteers

The Chiltern Society’s group of South Chilterns Path Maintenance Volunteers (SCPMV) is a well-supported volunteer group which improves local rights of way in parishes in the South Oxfordshire part of the Chilterns National Landscape (formerly known as the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty).

Over the years, the SCPMV has replaced over 400 stiles with gates making access to the countryside easier. TOE has funded more than 75% of these via applications submitted by the volunteers on behalf of The Chiltern Society. Typically each grant replaces about 10 stiles to create stile-free circular walks close to a village. The routes invariably pass a pub so walkers can stop for refreshments on the way, or build up an appetite for a meal afterwards.

The volunteers also undertake scrub clearance when rights of way become overgrown on behalf of Oxfordshire County Council. Wanting to reduce their carbon footprint, the volunteers are updating their equipment and TOE has also provided funding for battery operated brushcutters.

We know a lot of time goes into preparing the grant applications submitted by the group who often need permission from several neighbouring landowners. The Grant Panel consider their applications to be excellent as SCPMV projects demonstrate partnership work involving contributions from the landowners, Oxfordshire County Council’s Public Rights of Way team and often the Parish Council.

TOE believes that community groups like the South Chilterns Path Maintenance Volunteers play a vital role in keeping rights of way open and accessible.  Projects delivered by the SCPMVs are good value for money as the only costs are for materials as the work is undertaken by their skilled team of volunteers.  

Restoration of the Shepherds Steps, White Horse Hill, Uffington

Grant of £2,082, awarded in 2021

This project involved the installation of a flight of new steps to provide better and safer access to a steep footpath the condition of which had deteriorated to such an extent that it was potentially hazardous.  Site visitors are now keeping to the steps allowing the chalk grassland sward on either side to recover.

Nearly 100 stepping boards were installed, secured using stout pegs and covered with Type 1 aggregate to provide better grip.  Some sections have had shuttering applied too to prevent stones being kicked off. 

New posts were fitted along the adjacent fence line where required and two strands of barbed wire were replaced with smooth wire for a safer, more aesthetic appearance.  In addition, two waymarker posts were installed to give clarity to the route of the footpath, and a rustic bench (donated, not part of the grant application) was installed at the top of the steps to provide a point of rest after the steep climb. 

The work was undertaken by National Trust staff with the help of volunteers.  Their greatest challenge was driving pegs into the dense chalk subsoil which meant the project took longer than anticipated to complete. 

Lower Windrush Valley access improvements

Grant of £2,000 awarded in 2019. Total project cost £2,750

The Lower Windrush Valley in West Oxfordshire is much loved walking country comprising riverside pasture and the open waters of previous gravel extraction sites.  This project has improved three circular walks within the valley based on their location, beautiful scenery, proximity to local businesses and nature reserve, and links with longer distance footpaths.  The walks vary from 2.5km to 8km in length and two of the routes are now stile free thanks to TOE-funded gates.  The project has also installed waymarkers and produced downloadable maps.  

The Chairman of the local Parish Council, welcomed walkers to the area saying: “It’s a lovely quiet spot full of interesting wildlife, and we are really pleased to share it.”  He also recommended the local pub! 

Sydenham footpath gate

Grant of £1,000, awarded in 2022. Total project cost £1,400

Organised by Sydenham Parish Council, this project has improved access for all on the most well-used path in the village which leads walkers to the allotments/wildflower area/Queens Canopy thicket and to popular walking routes beyond the village. 

The work involved replacing a narrow old gate with a wider one to extend the width of access and the path surface has been improved.

Revitalising Uffington's footpaths

Three grants since 2020 totalling £11,144. Total project cost £20,160

This ambitious project by Uffington Parish Council has made footpaths around the village easier to access and walkable by people of all ages; this is excellent for community involvement and therefore beneficial for the health and well-being of residents.

Across three projects, 25 stiles have been replaced with gates, path surfaces improved and old footbridges replaced.

The Parish Council has told us that the number of people using the footpaths in the centre of the village has increased dramatically since the new gates were installed, particularly as using the footpath enables parents and children to avoid using narrow roads with no pavements for the journey to / from school.

Access improvements to entrance of Oxford City Farm

Grant of £3,000, awarded in 2021. Total project cost £3,846

The grant funded the majority of the design and implementation by contractors of greatly improved pedestrian access to Oxford City Farm.  A new 1.2m pedestrian gate was installed and a 1.6m wide level path made from the gate to the tarmac area of the site (approx. 30m).  Wheelchair users and parents of children in buggies can now access the farm much more smoothly, and are also separated from any vehicles entering and leaving the site.  A secure letterbox has been fitted in the new gate which, even though it sounds very minor, is proving really helpful in terms of administration for the farm itself.

 A consultation with site users about what would help them access the site more easily led to feedback that the entrance was an issue.  Volunteers then helped design the project and  have also helped to plant bulbs and spread woodchip on areas between the new path and the vehicle access way with the aim of developing this area as a long flower bed filled with flowering herbs for a wonderful scented entrance to the farm.

 The grant holder said “TOE funding has enabled us to deliver hugely improved pedestrian access to our Farm site.  We are so pleased to have been able to action to undertake these works.  We were so conscious of the difficult access for wheelchair users, which thanks to TOE funding, is now a thing of the past!”