Cox's Walk

[creditwheredue]

Last time I was up there, people were bypassing the blocked off bridge by going down the slope and up the other side as well as hanging out underneath it. This part of the woods had been fenced off for years and nature is probably taking a bashing due to it. I wouldn?t be suprised if the council or Estate have taken more drastic action. Like everywhere right now, footfall had increased everywhere, bins are over flowing and dog shit bags, masks and litter are everywhere.

[NewWave]

creditwheredue Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Last time I was up there, people were bypassing

> the blocked off bridge by going down the slope and

> up the other side as well as hanging out

> underneath it. This part of the woods had been

> fenced off for years and nature is probably taking

> a bashing due to it. I wouldn?t be suprised if

> the council or Estate have taken more drastic

> action. Like everywhere right now, footfall had

> increased everywhere, bins are over flowing and

> dog shit bags, masks and litter are everywhere.

Its so sad!

People have no respect, I have noticed overflowing bins there and rubbish scattered around.

Woodland is sacred.

We are so incredibly priviallaged to have this on our doorstep.

It has been a lifesaver for me mentally in the past year and it would be a terrible thing if due to the selfish lazy few this wonderful amenity was taken from public use.

[Sue]

There are a lot of assumptions being made on this thread!

If you are concerned I suggest you phone or email to find out what the actual true situation is.

If you don't want to look at the link I gave above, here are the contact details given there:

Contact us

Contact number: 020 3897 6151

Contact email: [email protected]

There is also a relevant Facebook page, The Great North Wood, which has some other contact details:

https://www.facebook.com/TheGreatNorthWood/

There is a different phone number, and you can also send a message via Facebook.

[alice]

There?s a twitter link and a date in a week or so for comments/ objections to be made to Southwark.

[intexasatthe moment]

"There are a lot of assumptions being made on this thread!

If you are concerned I suggest you phone or email to find out what the actual true situation is.

If you don't want to look at the link I gave above, here are the contact details given there:"

Sue do you know who and why has organised the closure of the access opposite the ex Grove Tavern pub ?

I've clicked on 5 of the links on The London Wildlife Trust site that you linked to but there is no mention of the closure .

[AllisonAdler]

Many of us contacted LWT, Southwark Council, and some of our local councillors immediately. Just saw this kind response from Andy Simmons on Twitter:

Replying to

@SaveOaks

@wildlondon_SHW

and 5 others

Thanks for flagging this up. Council officers report this was not the action of the council or its? contractors and is being re-opened. Lots of problems with illegal events in recent days in the area so both the police and LWT have been notified.

[chickenteeka]

Thank you very much and huge thanks to Andy Simmons

[alice]

Just strange - the barricades etc looked very official.

[decca]

I agree that the London Wildlife Trust have done a great job with the woods and yes people have been really selfish. Don?t know about empty Tofu wrappers but did see loads of empty cups from Gails (picked up 2 by the bins). However I?ve also looked on the website and can?t see any information either. Communication is really important. Wouldn?t it be easier just to set out what the position is to avoid any ?assumptions?. Also if you are a dog owner (as i am) and bins full then would suggest walking with your poo bag to the next bin that isn?t which I assure you won?t be a million miles away.

[Brian up the hill]

I am a volunteer in Sydenham Hill Wood and I can assure everyone who is concerned by this incident that the London Wildlife Trust has had nothing to do with it and has no knowledge as to why it was done. The council seemingly is in the dark too.

In addition to the locks on the entrances, the lock to the gate at Peckarman's Wood/tunnel entrance was cut off and replaced with another hefty padlock. We can only guess but the theory is that there was an illegal gathering, perhaps on New Year's Eve and that locking the gates was to keep out unwanted "guests" and the authorities. Presumably supplies were brought in by car through this gate. Of course, the cost of rectifying this falls on the Wildlife Trust as the padlock will have to be removed and replaced. This was an act of gross selfishness and stupidity, which resulted in people having difficulty in finding a way out as dusk fell.

We work hard to maintain the Wood and the last year of so has been extremely difficult. Lockdowns have meant the suspension of volunteer work so any repairs have been done by the conservation officer himself. Footfall in the Wood has increased threefold and this is reflected in the increased amount of damage.

We know that the vast majority of visitors love the Wood and appreciate what we try to do but not everyone sees it that way. We have seen fences and dead-hedges destroyed deliberately and even the handrail on the steps up from Cox's Walk bridge being ripped up and thrown onto the cordoned off section of the bridge.

However, if anyone is interested, there is a new blog explaining what is done in the Wood and why is is done.

This can be seen at https://woodsworkinsydenham.blogspot.com/

[decca]

Thank you for the update. Really helpful and thank you very much for your work as a volunteer.

[Cyclemonkey]

Thanks for the update Brian. It's really saddening if this is true, the woods have been a really great resource for all of us this year. I remember when things got really hard in Spring just having a quiet green space to go and sit and gather breath was a life saver.

If any costs - for lock replacement or clean up fall on the Trust I am sure many of us will be willing to help financially and practically.

[Sue]

intexasatthe moment Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> "There are a lot of assumptions being made on this

> thread!

>

> If you are concerned I suggest you phone or email

> to find out what the actual true situation is.

>

> If you don't want to look at the link I gave

> above, here are the contact details given there:"

>

> Sue do you know who and why has organised the

> closure of the access opposite the ex Grove Tavern

> pub ?

>

> I've clicked on 5 of the links on The London

> Wildlife Trust site that you linked to but there

> is no mention of the closure .

No I don't know!

The only reason I posted that link was because it had contact details and I thought those people may know the situation if somebody wanted to contact them.

But from more recent posts on here, it seems that they don't

[AllisonAdler]

Thank you, Brian, and for all the brilliant work LWT do. And indeed, if there is any help needed, there are many of us (me included) who would be more than happy to provide assistance.

[AylwardS]

London Wildlife Trust don?t charge for entry to their reserves and a number of posts on here have recognised the value of the woods in recent times. The cost of replacing the padlock and any damage caused is going to fall on the trust.

If you can consider joining - membership is one source of income for them and they?ve no doubt seen a reduction in income. The monthly cost is far less than paying to park in Dulwich Park and there is a local example of the work membership provides

https://www.wildlondon.org.uk/support-us/join-us

Thank you to all staff and volunteers.

[alice]

Charging entry to the woods?? What

[Brian up the hill]

No-one is suggesting an entry charge for the Wood.

Its great to see so much support. At the moment, volunteer work is suspended and given the way things are developing, I would imagine it will some time before it will restart. Even when it does, the groups are limited to six for social distancing protocols. Hopefully, when this situation is passed, we can go back to working in groups of the size that can make a difference.

In the meantime, AylwardS suggestion is excellent. The London Wildlife Trust has lost a huge amount of income from having no school visits or corporate team building days. If you can, becoming a member would be a great help.

Here is the link again,

https://www.wildlondon.org.uk/support-us/join-us

And thank you again for all the appreciative comments.

[alice]

Previous post implied they could if they wanted.

[ianr]

I see that the Trust can benefit from Gift Aid from both membership fees and plain donations from taxpayers.

[NewWave]

Brian up the hill Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> I am a volunteer in Sydenham Hill Wood and I can

> assure everyone who is concerned by this incident

> that the London Wildlife Trust has had nothing to

> do with it and has no knowledge as to why it was

> done. The council seemingly is in the dark too.

>

> In addition to the locks on the entrances, the

> lock to the gate at Peckarman's Wood/tunnel

> entrance was cut off and replaced with another

> hefty padlock. We can only guess but the theory is

> that there was an illegal gathering, perhaps on

> New Year's Eve and that locking the gates was to

> keep out unwanted "guests" and the authorities.

> Presumably supplies were brought in by car through

> this gate. Of course, the cost of rectifying this

> falls on the Wildlife Trust as the padlock will

> have to be removed and replaced. This was an act

> of gross selfishness and stupidity, which resulted

> in people having difficulty in finding a way out

> as dusk fell.

>

> We work hard to maintain the Wood and the last

> year of so has been extremely difficult. Lockdowns

> have meant the suspension of volunteer work so any

> repairs have been done by the conservation officer

> himself. Footfall in the Wood has increased

> threefold and this is reflected in the increased

> amount of damage.

>

> We know that the vast majority of visitors love

> the Wood and appreciate what we try to do but not

> everyone sees it that way. We have seen fences and

> dead-hedges destroyed deliberately and even the

> handrail on the steps up from Cox's Walk bridge

> being ripped up and thrown onto the cordoned off

> section of the bridge.

>

> However, if anyone is interested, there is a new

> blog explaining what is done in the Wood and why

> is is done.

> This can be seen at

> https://woodsworkinsydenham.blogspot.com/

Thank you.

And thank you for all you do-

Is there anywhere that we could register ourselves for volunteer work once the current Pandemic calms down?

The woods proved a real godsend for me (and I'm sure many others) during the spring and November lockdowns and also in the 11 years I have lived in the area.

Its a magical place and I get so sad that there are the few that dont respect it

[NewWave]

Brian up the hill Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> No-one is suggesting an entry charge for the

> Wood.

>

> Its great to see so much support. At the moment,

> volunteer work is suspended and given the way

> things are developing, I would imagine it will

> some time before it will restart. Even when it

> does, the groups are limited to six for social

> distancing protocols. Hopefully, when this

> situation is passed, we can go back to working in

> groups of the size that can make a difference.

>

> In the meantime, AylwardS suggestion is excellent.

> The London Wildlife Trust has lost a huge amount

> of income from having no school visits or

> corporate team building days. If you can, becoming

> a member would be a great help.

> Here is the link again,

> https://www.wildlondon.org.uk/support-us/join-us

>

> And thank you again for all the appreciative

> comments.

Thank you I shall join tomorrow.

Its the least I can do because the Woods have really helped me during last year's fear and uncertainty and I will no doubt be relying on them to provide more of the same in the coming months.

[NewWave]

alice Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Previous post implied they could if they wanted.

No it didn't it stated that they DONT charge entry to their reserves and that membership of the london wildlife trust helps support their work.

especially now.

[Brian up the hill]

In answer to NewWave any anyone else who would like to volunteer, the conservation officer for the Wood is Sam and his email is [email protected]

The website link specific to the Wood is

https://www.wildlondon.org.uk/nature-reserves/sydenham-hill-wood-and-coxs-walk

At the moment, volunteer workdays are suspended and when they do restart, it is likely that numbers will be limited by social distancing protocols. In the brief period when they had resumed, volunteers had to book book via Eventbright and groups were limited to a maximum of six.

However, let?s be optimistic and hope that it won?t be too long before we can get back to a more normal situation and that groups can be as large as necessary.

In the meantime, enjoy the Wood and the pleasure and mental balm it brings.

[NewWave]

Brian up the hill Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> In answer to NewWave any anyone else who would

> like to volunteer, the conservation officer for

> the Wood is Sam and his email is

> [email protected]

> The website link specific to the Wood is

> https://www.wildlondon.org.uk/nature-reserves/syde

> nham-hill-wood-and-coxs-walk

>

> At the moment, volunteer workdays are suspended

> and when they do restart, it is likely that

> numbers will be limited by social distancing

> protocols. In the brief period when they had

> resumed, volunteers had to book book via

> Eventbright and groups were limited to a maximum

> of six.

> However, let?s be optimistic and hope that it

> won?t be too long before we can get back to a more

> normal situation and that groups can be as large

> as necessary.

> In the meantime, enjoy the Wood and the pleasure

> and mental balm it brings.

thank you!

[n dulwich northerner]

Just saw on ITV London news that police have seized DJ gear in Dulwich Wood. The pictures implied it was stored in the old railway tunnel entrance.