Image: Volunteer checking tubes and trees post planting as Westfield Primary School , May 2024

Published 07/01/2025

As 2025 begins, we reflect on the events and milestones that made 2024 another standout year for the Forest of Marston Vale Trust. From significant environmental projects to community engagement, it’s been a year of progress, challenges, and accomplishments. Let’s look back at what we’ve achieved and look forward to the exciting opportunities ahead.

Planting a Greener Future

The year kicked off with our winter planting season, where we planted a staggering 219 hectares of new woodland. Across 34 sites, we planted 384,755 trees and shrubs and introduced 7,809 metres of new hedging. Our small yet dedicated team made an impressive impact, proportionately planting more than any of the 14 other Community Forests in England. Of course, it’s not a competition. As England’s largest environmentally led regeneration project, our network of Community Forests is working together to help deliver the government’s national tree planting goals, as well as making a positive local impact, creating pockets of accessible woodland on people’s doorsteps and connecting communities with nature.

Enhancing the Forest Centre

There’s been lots of improvements in the Forest Centre over the year. Investing in the building and Millennium Country Park’s facilities are essential to keep our wonderful visitors returning, and attract new ones, which in turn provides a valuable income source for the Charity. We closed for a short time at the start of the year to clean and varnish the café flooring, then later in the year we refurbished our indoor toilets – some much needed updates! In the Café, our new coffee machines are making the coffee from our friends at Wooden Hill Roasters taste even better, and the perfect accompaniment to the sweet treats baked in-house by Chloe. Our upstairs balcony continues to be a popular relaxation spot, and the introduction of The Forest Bookshelf makes it the perfect escape to spend an hour or two with a great book.

 

Images left to right: The Forest Bookshelf found on the Balcony at the Forest Centre, homemade brownie made by our amazing baker Chloe, our corporate Friend of the Forest and coffee provider Robin, from Wooden Hill.

Improving Accessibility

Making our green spaces more accessible is one of our ongoing objectives – we want people of all ages and differing abilities to have the opportunity to connect with nature. In spring 2024, we proudly opened a Changing Places toilet within the Millennium Country Park. Funded jointly with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing, and Communities with support from Central Bedfordshire Council, this new facility opens our green spaces to more people of different abilities. The fully accessible bathroom includes a hoist, changing bed, shower, and privacy screens, making a huge difference for families and visitors with additional needs.

The Sensory Wildlife Garden also saw major improvements this year, benefiting visitors with mobility or sensory needs. This mini version of the larger Millennium Country Park was originally designed to appeal to those with reduced mobility and neurodivergent individuals, for whom the busyness and scale of the Park can be overwhelming. After 20+ years the Garden was dated, with uneven paths which frequently flooded and crumbling plant beds. Now the paths have been resurfaced, new raised beds installed, and the pond has been cleared and deepened. During 2025 more features will be added making the Garden a more peaceful spot and wildlife haven – Watch this space.

 

Images left to right: Work underway in the Sensory Wildlife Garden, opening day of our Changing Places toilets, sunsetting on the Forest Centre café garden (photo credit: Martin Green).

Managing Habitats

Biodiversity and nature conservation are at the heart of our work. At Waypost Wood, we collaborated with the Bedfordshire Bat Group to convert a World War II pillbox into a bat hibernaculum. Going forward we’ll work together with the Group to monitor its use.

We also saw the return of Marsh Harriers (Circus aeruginosus) and Bittern (Botaurus stellaris) at the Millennium Country Park - two bird species with Amber status on the UK Birds of Conservation Concern - proving that our habitat management efforts are making a real difference.

Excitingly, we had a sweeping visit from an Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) in the Autumn as it was seen by one of our expert volunteers gliding over the Millennium Country Park - an unusual sighting, we hope we’ll see again in 2025.

Find our Bird Lists over in 'News'

 

Images left to right: Marsh Harriers (Circus aeruginosus), Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) and Bittern (Botaurus stellaris). 

Awards and Recognition

The hard work and dedication of our team didn’t go unnoticed in 2024. The Forest Centre and Millennium Country Park were awarded their 18th consecutive Green Flag Award – a prestigious international accolade recognising excellence in park facilities, safety, and environmental management.

At England’s Community Forests’ annual conference, two of our team were celebrated for their contributions to woodland creation and management. Simon Fisher, one of our Forest Creation Officers, received the Breakthrough Star of the Year Award, while James Russell, our Forest Director, received the Veteran Oak Award. It wasn’t the only title bestowed upon James this last year, as he was also honoured with becoming a Deputy Lieutenant to Susan Lousada, the Lord Lieutenant of Bedfordshire.

Images left to right: Our Forest Director, James Russell receiving his Veteran Oak Award at Englands Community Forests annual conference; Forest of Marston Vale Trust Team celebrating another year of being awarded the Green Flag; Simon Fisher receiving his Breakthrough Star award.

Community Engagement

As always events were a big part of our activities over the last year, from those that we organised and hosted to external events that we attended. We hosted over 100 events, ranging from kids’ crafts to bird walks, volunteer days to tribute nights, all bringing visitors old and new to the Forest Centre. Great Big Green Week was an opportunity to get our visitors thinking about healthier and more sustainable ‘swaps’ they could easily introduce to their everyday lives. In July we worked with our amazing friends at Midas Pattern Company Ltd and the Green Earth Café as part of the Eco Village at Bedford’s River Festival. 

In August we had the Sunrise to Sunset Challenge, when Andrew Linduschka ran an epic 100km around the Millennium Country Park in one day. He started as the sun rose and kept running until it set around 14 hours later, only stopping for short breaks to take on copious amounts of fluids and carbs to keep him fuelled. Andy smashed his £1000 target and fundraised a fabulous sum of £1311 for the Forest.

Images left to right: volunteers and visitors taking part in Great Big Green Week 2024; Rachel Geraghty at our stall at 2024 Bedfordshire River Festival, Andrew Linduschka on his Sunrise to Sunset challenge.

Reviving Holcot and Reynolds Woods

September saw the start of an exciting new project for the Forest – breathing life back into Holcot and Reynolds Woods. We took over management of these woodlands, which cover 97 hectares in the Cranfield/Brogborough area, and started work on a 10-year plan to restore and rejuvenate them. After years of neglect, this project will increase the resilience of these woodlands against pests, diseases, and climate change while promoting biodiversity. We also hope that by documenting and sharing our woodland management practices and their results, that we will encourage other organisations to follow suit and help save other ancient and neglected woodlands around the country.

Overcoming Challenges

There are always challenges for us as a small charity trying to create woodlands and get local communities connected with the nature on their doorsteps. Anti-social behaviour remains a frequent headache for our Ranger team, whether that be general littering to more extreme acts like trampling over safety fencing, allowing dogs to run out of control in the Park terrorising wildlife, to burning a hole in the floor of our one of our bird hides. Sadly, this just diverts our busy Ranger team away from doing essential habitat management, and so costs the Charity valuable time and money.

The weather has also flexed its muscles this year, and we’ve been battered by storms and flooding – who can forget the river that the A421 became for a couple of weeks?! Just more evidence that we need to plant more trees and ensure that our woodlands are well managed, so that they can help fight back against the effects of climate change.

Images left to right: our Facilities Manager, Jon Beresford; Forest Centre driveway flood; closure of the Elstow Brooke Bridge in the Millennium Country Park.

Looking Ahead

We’re entering 2025 full of energy and excitement. Tree planting is underway at over 40 sites and you can come and get involved at our public planting day on 9^th February. If you’re not free on the day, there will be lots of other volunteering opportunities available throughout the year. We were lucky to have 4186 hours donated to us by volunteers last year, and there’s always space for more, whether as a one-off or on a regular basis.

We’re currently refreshing our Forest Plan for the next 25 years and you can help shape the future of the Forest by completing our online survey. Growing a Forest is a slow process, but remember the wise words of Nelson Henderson who said, “The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit.”  Help us keep growing the Forest in 2025 and beyond – whether you attend an event or buy a cake at the Forest Centre, volunteer some time, follow and share our stories on social media or make a donation, we will make a difference together, one tree at a time.