Changes at popular Stroud nature reserve teeming with wildlife

Stroud Valleys Project will now manage Frome Banks Nature Reserve near the canal and the Capel Mill viaduct previously owned by Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust since 2015. 

The wildlife haven is home to bats and otters, as well as a diverse range of wetland plants and birds including dippers, grey wagtails, and kingfishers. 

Roger Mortlock, chief executive of Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust, said: “We’ve been rethinking and consolidating our nature reserves so we can work to create bigger, better and more joined-up landscapes for nature across the county.

The wildlife haven near the canal is home to bats and otters

“Though we will be sad to say goodbye to this nature reserve, a fantastic oasis in the middle of Stroud and one of the best places in Gloucestershire to see dippers. 

“We’ve really enjoyed working in partnership with SVP on a number of projects. 

“They're perfect new owners for Frome Banks, especially as neighbours along the River Frome with a great track record of engaging people in Stroud.”

Stella Parkes Chair of SVP Trustees , Roger Mortlock CEO of GWT, Clare Mahdiyone CEO of SVP

Clare Mahdiyone, CEO of Stroud Valleys Project, said: “We’re so grateful to Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust for handing over the stewardship of this beautiful spot to us. 

“We thank them for their sympathetic maintenance of this wild space and look forward to taking it forward to a new era.”

The two-acre site is behind Dr Newton's Way and adjoins the canal and the River Frome - its footpath connects to the popular Stroud circular walk The WAS Way.

SVP was established in 1988 and collaborates with the community and volunteers to ensure that no piece of land in the district that requires ecological care is overlooked.

The charity aims to make the area more accessible to the people of Stroud while retaining its biodiversity moving forwards.