What has WSWG been doing this month?
- WSWG signed up to Tayside Biodiversity Partnership’s 21 Days of Nature challenge and hopes that those of you who have followed suit are thoroughly enjoying the daily treats it is serving up to us. Here’s a summary of what it has been about. “21 ways to be kind to nature over the course of 21 days. Beginning with National Hedgehog Day on the 2nd of May, we’ll take a trip through one of nature’s loveliest months finishing our journey together the 22nd May with the UN Day of Biodiversity. Along the way, we’ll find out about a variety of birds, bees, butterflies and moths, mammals, insects, fish and flowers all the while discovering ways to support them and help them thrive.” Nature is AMAZING!
- We had two very useful progress and site meetings with Forestry and Land Scotland. What a pleasure it was for us to get six people together in the woods again at the same time!
- Participation in Blairgowrie Climate Café’s new initiative: Tayside Woodland Partnerships, to bring landowners and communities together to create new woodlands for carbon sequestration and other ecological benefits.
- Margaret Lear gave us another wonderful blog: “To Taymount Woods the long way round”. Do have a read if you have not done so already to discover what challenges and gifts the woods presented this month. So much for us to tackle in future, but so much for us all to gain.
- A Habitat Survey has very kindly been carried out for Five Mile Wood by Birnam-based ecologist, Adrian Davis, whilst Carol Pudsey has also been discreetly undertaking some small mammal camera trapping for us in Taymount Wood. We’ll keep you posted on what they find. Here’s a few of Carol’s photos of a woodmouse for starters!
- We received a huge number of extremely useful and interesting comments from the Community Consultation which we are still analysing with a view to incorporating as many as possible into the Proposal going forward. We will be posting the Survey Report on the website soon and will let you know when it’s up there for all to see.
- Constitution very nearly completed for new WSWG SCIO, based on a model recommended by the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR). WSWG is looking for a treasurer to join our new board, without which we will be unable to register as a SCIO. Please do get in touch for a chat if you might be able to help with this.
- 2-year budget and funding plan being developed to support immediate and longer-term fundraising activity.
- Developing a programme of summer activities for everyone in Taymount and Five Mile Woods under the title of Summer of Nature, in recognition of huge support in the Community Consultation for managing the woods for climate and biodiversity, nature walks, environmental education and biodiversity surveying and recording.
Word of the Month
SCIO: A Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SCIO) is an optional new legal form for registered Scottish charities. Scottish Ministers introduced the new SCIO legal form in April 2011 to allow charities to be incorporated but to be administered and regulated by a single body, the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (‘OSCR’). Charitable companies, which are also incorporated, report both to OSCR and to the Registrar of Companies (‘Companies House’).(Source: OSCR)
WSWG intends to become a two-tier SCIO which means it will have a separate body of members who elect the trustees to govern the charity. Members and charity trustees both have powers or duties.
What’s coming up next?
Following on from 21 Days of Nature, please let us know if you would like to volunteer to take part in bee, butterfly, dragonfly or bird surveys over the summer to help us find out a bit more about the wildlife in our woods. No specialist skills required. On-line training or other support will be given to help with identification.
