It will use the money on its ongoing restoration of Fort Field along Fort Road.
The money will pay for planting an avenue of cherry and fruit trees, a picnic bench, and the annual cutting, baling and haymaking of the wildflower meadow as the charity seeks to restore the area’s biodiversity.
The annual Dougie’s Grant was set up to honour the memory of local farmer Douglas Le Huquet. His daughter, Michelle, said he would have been ‘delighted’ with the project’s plans for the field.
‘Not only was he a real supporter of nature right through his life as a farmer, but he also shared his passion for Guernsey with everyone all of his life. I know this won’t be instant, in fact that’s part of the reason we picked this project – the results are going to be there for years to come,’ she said.
‘I really look forward to walking through the meadows and just sitting there in the summer enjoying the sights and sounds of nature. This is something for the whole community, for everyone to enjoy.’
Pollinator Project chairman Gordon Steele said the charity was committed to improving the area for at least another three years.
‘Sometimes you apply for grants and you just have to forget about them, the competition is really fierce to get funding for charities – there are so many good causes across the Bailiwick. But we realised we had a chance with our Fort Field restoration plans. We know that Dougie enjoyed nature and that walking through meadows filled with flowers was something he loved,’ said Mr Steele.
‘Michelle is absolutely right, this a very public area and we want to make it better for nature and for all of us.
'More colourful, more nature-friendly, and a real community space.’
The charity’s work on the field has come with some controversy. Some people believe that an effort for rewilding the area makes it look untidy and it went out to consultation during the summer to assess support for various ideas. The majority supported the retention of the wildflower meadow originally sown in 2017 and its enhancement through more colour, more trees and a picnic bench.
Last month it signed a three-year service level agreement with the States which confirmed that it would manage the wildflower meadows and surrounding area at the Morley Chapel end of the field.
Since the start of last year’s volunteers from the Pollinator Project have mowed, cut, raked, scarified, and strimmed the area, and at this time of year work now focuses more on planting native hedging and trees.
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