This week is Love Your Burial Ground Week, a chance to celebrate your churchyard! Many parishes are also taking part in Churches Count on Nature to record the biodiversity they find.
The initiative is a partnership between Caring for God’s Acre, the Church of England, Church in Wales and A Rocha UK with churches from all denominations recording the wildlife within their churchyards.
Burial grounds can be ideal places for introducing people to wildlife and local heritage and many churches are planning events to encourage the local community to help with the wildlife count.
At St Peter’s Church in Pedmore, Stourbridge, there is a chance for people to come into the churchyard through the week to record the insects, birds and mammals they see (bug boxes available), as well as write a prayer for taking care of the Earth and all God's creatures. Activity guides are available in the church’s Lychgate and there are books and magazines on nature for free, bark rubbing and looking for different trees and plants.
At St Peter’s Church in Powick (between Worcester and Malvern) there will be children’s activities available next weekend from 2 – 5pm each day. There is a chance to make a bug hotel, people will be encouraged to record the wildlife they spot, and the church will be open with tea, coffee and biscuits available.
All of the data collected will be submitted to Caring for God’s Acre and will eventually be uploaded to the National Biodiversity Network (NBN) Atlas, where they will be freely available to anyone interested in the biodiversity of their local burial ground.
Why not use this week to get out in your churchyard and see what you can spot!
