Last updated 21 February 2012

© Queens Park Residents 2011

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Kingsthorpe Meadows Local Nature Reserve and Wildlife Trust

Kingsthorpe Meadows Local Nature Reserve is located on Mill Lane and lies along the Brampton Arm of the River Nene. This fantastic green space covers 37 acres and forms an important part of the green corridor network that runs through Northampton. The variety of habitats present at Kingsthorpe mean it is a great place to spot all kinds of wildlife.

The river running through the reserve provides an ideal spot for kingfishers, which you can often see darting along the river feeding on the many small fish which can be seen in the shallow waters. There are also a number of ponds and wet areas on the site which attract waders such as snipe in the winter months. The scrub provides a perfect habitat for all kinds of birds, such as greenfinches, long-tailed tits and goldfinch. The meadow areas are full of wildflowers in the summer, including meadow saxifrage, great burnet and lesser stitchwort. The grassland is also home to  all kinds of insects, and is a great place to spot butterflies, bees, grasshoppers and damselflies.

Kingsthorpe Meadows is owned by Northampton Borough Council and managed by The Wildlife Trust. The Trust looks after the reserve to maximise its benefit for wildlife and also to make it a great for people to visit and enjoy being outside.

Over the next year, Kingsthorpe Meadows is the focus of an exciting community project called ‘The Great Outdoors’, which aims to encourage more local people to use the reserve and  to make Kingsthorpe Meadows as welcoming and accessible for visitors as possible.

Between now and the end of January Louise Tuffin, Community Involvement Officer for the Wildlife Trust, would like to hear what people think about Kingsthorpe Meadows: ‘we’re really interested to find out how people currently view and access Kignsthorpe Meadows, if at all. We’d like to know how often you visit, what you do when you’re there, what activities you’d be interested in taking part in at the reserve, what’s important to you when visiting, if there is anything you think we could improve on etc etc.’

The easiest way to let us know your thoughts is to fill out our online survey. You can access the survey by visiting our website, www.wildlifebcn.org, or going directly to http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/kingsthorpemeadows. The survey will only take about 5 minutes to complete and you’ll also be entered  into a prize draw to win some wildlife gardening goodies!

For more information about Kingsthorpe Meadows, The Wildlife Trust, or to request a paper copy of the survey please contact Louise on 01604 774043 or email louise.tuffin@wildlifebcn.org