Blackwood Estate Community Association in Lanarkshire has secured funding to purchase 65 acres of Loch Wood in the Estate. The purchase was completed in April 2021.
The group has quickly got to work carrying out essential Health and Safety works to host outdoor classes for local schoolchildren and community groups and restore the Victorian path network. This will provide good access to woodland for the three villages of Blackwood, Kirkmuirhill and Boghead and an opportunity to create an interest in nature.
The group secured funding from a range of partners to purchase and restore the land including South Lanarkshire Council, the Scottish Land Fund, and Scottish Landfill Communities Fund.
The funding will help to restore Victorian paths in the most accessible areas of the woodland, home to protected species such as tawny owls, otters and kingfishers, as well as several ancient specimen trees.
The project brings communities together while also promoting sustainability, outdoor learning and wildlife rehoming.
