Mumbles Community Council would like to extend a huge thank you to all of the volunteers...

Mumbles Community Council would like to extend a huge thank you to all of the volunteers who have helped with our Sustainable Mumbles Urban Green Spaces (SMUGS) project so far. We would also like to thank the Heritage Lottery for providing the grant funding to make this project possible.

We are currently building the Norton Nature Reserve and Community Garden, located in Castle woods next to the Lower Norton Allotments. Volunteers have generously contributed over 45 hours of their time to this project in this year alone! With this help, we have made great progress on the site.

We have planted large patches of native wildflowers, including over 200 bulbs and over 20 new trees. Our planted snowdrops are flowering this February.

We have established foundations for a small wildlife pond and community allotment greenhouse.

We have established a hedgerow of native species around the boundaries of the site, to guide people to the entrances. Over the upcoming years this will be managed using traditional Gower hedge laying techniques.

We have also begun excavating the bank on the site which we believe may contain an ancient wall of importance to Mumbles Heritage, in order to carefully reveal this buried feature.

The work on this site is on-going, with plans to build raised allotment beds on site for local community groups in the February. We also plan to continue work on the pond, wall excavation and greenhouse, and establish a path around the site.

If you would be interested in volunteering, or would like to find out more about this project, please contact our Environmental Engagement Officer Jasmine by emailing jasmine.weedon@mumbles.gov.uk. You can also follow the link below to sign up to our Green Team mailing list and find out more: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/XFDN8MS.

Alongside volunteering days, we are planning a number of talks and guided walks through the site and woods by wildlife and history experts over the upcoming months. Details for these events will follow shortly, and will be available on our website’s environmental section and on the Facebook page: @Mumbles Community Council Environmental. In cases where event ticket numbers are limited, guests who can bring a valid lottery ticket will have priority.

Find out more about Mumbles Community Council’s current projects on Facebook: @MumblesCommunityCouncil.

Snowdrop flowering at Norton Nature reserve, following bulb planting in early 2022.

The Sustainable Mumbles Urban Green Spaces (SMUGS) project that is building Norton Nature Reserve and Community garden was funded by The National Lottery’s Heritage Fund.

Excavation begins of the potentially historic wall buried at the Norton Nature Reserve and Community Garden. Further updates on findings to follow on our website and social media.

Wildlife pond and marsh foundations have been built by volunteers at Norton Nature Reserve. Planting will be carried out at the pond in February 2022.