St Mary's Church in Kempsey and St James the Great Church in Norton have both received funding to enable biodiversity projects to take place in their churchyards and the surrounding areas.
St Mary's, Kempsey has received 8,471of funding from the England European Regional Development Fund. Theproject will focus upon the protection, restoration and enhancement of HatfieldBrooks wetland habitats, restoration of wildflower rich grassland and theestablishment of a traditional Worcestershire orchard for wildlife and thelocal community on Church meadows. StMarys churchyard will also be managed in order to promote a mosaic ofgrassland and wildflowers.
St James' in Norton has received 2,971from the same fund. This will create a community space to include a wildlife areawith a diverse range of habitats which will provide an attractive and peacefulplace for visitors to the church and will act as an education facility for arange of community groups, such as schools.
Both projects are part of the NaturalNetworks programme, delivered in partnership between Worcestershire CountyCouncil and Worcestershire Wildlife Trust. St Mary's has also received 10,000 from the National Lottery Awards for Allprogramme, which will help the PCC to achieve their vision of creating acommunity space around the church which both protects and enhances theenvironment and benefits the wider community.
Rector Mark Badger said: "We're delighted to have received this support. Our churches and their surrounds are not just a monuments to the past, but part of a living,developing community. The grants willhelp us to protect and enhance the churchyards and also enable us to involve localgroups in the projects. We're committed to making both churches aspiritual and community resource, not only a sacred place, but also a sharedspace, where community can be celebrated and strengthened."
