News
Stroud Valleys Project has been mentioned with photos in the Financial Times this week in connection with our tree planting.
If you have an FT subscription you can access the article by clicking here (they have an option to pay for a trial at £1 but you have to remember to cancel after a month to avoid a larger subscription being taken after that):
https://www.ft.com/content/7e1c7186-691d-4b9b-949f-711321a05e5a
Photo Copyright: Deborah Roberts
- Created: 21 September 2020
The Five Valleys' Shopping Centre in Stroud in collaboration with Stroud In Bloom and the volunteer team of the Stroud Valleys Project have dug in with a major 
planting scheme on a key site in the town.
The transformation of Five Valleys includes major improvements to the frontage along Merrywalks where new glazing has been installed and the exterior of the car park has also been given a facelift – including a new living green wall which depicts the red thread used in the uniform of the Coldstream Guards manufactured in the Stroud Valleys.
Now the Five Valleys team have turned their attention to the area outside Fat Toni’s, Dominos and The Vue Cinema where the borders have been planted up to create a softer and more inviting welcome to the centre.
- Created: 29 August 2020
A meadow of wildflowers blossomed at Capel’s Mill this summer thanks to the efforts of volunteers from Stroud Valleys Project and Nailsworth Rotary Club.
Pic Copyright: DeborahRoberts
SVP project manager Fred Miller, who organised the working parties, said, ”Wild flowers such as Lady’s Bedstraw, Wild Carrot and Birds Foot Trefoil are just some of the flora that have done well this year, possibly due to the hot dry weather in May.”
During August and September, the work teams are mowing the meadow by hand using Austrian-style scythes. This ensures that a variety of flowers can thrive whilst the grass, dock and bramble do not get a chance to dominate. The meadow plants are mown at this time to ensure that they have set seed. The stems are left lying on the ground for a couple of weeks in order to dry and scatter the seeds to ensure new plants germinate to replace old ones. Some flower species last several years, but some, such as wild carrot, live only two years, hence the need for this regeneration to take place. Some of the seeds are collected up on a tarpaulin, to sow on other sites, thereby spreading this valuable habitat, which is so important to butterflies, moths, beetles and crickets.
‘’At this time of year, if people trample through the meadow they actually help it - ‘many feet make light work’ - knocking seeds from the flower heads and pushing them into the soil,” Fred explained.
- Created: 28 August 2020
Dear eco shop customers
UPDATE : We are open Tuesday - Friday 10.30am to 4pm, and Saturday 10am - 2pm. 
Thank you for all your messages and enquiries while we have been closed during lockdown - it means a lot to us.
We are delighted to let you know that we will be starting our programme of re-opening next week with some limited hours and special arrangements in place. We will be undertaking constant review and monitoring and plan to gradually increase hours, access and availability as we can, keeping both your safety and the safety of our staff at the forefront of our minds. We will do our best to keep you up to date with all our plans and opening hours via social media, website and shop window.
- Created: 19 October 2020
Dear Friends,
Are you sat at home during lockdown, wishing you could take all that clutter to a charity shop? We've teamed up with Virgin Money Giving, World of Books Group and trade-in site Ziffit to give you an innovative new way to support our charity to allow you to do just that.
It’s a great way to raise funds easily and safely. You can sell books that have an ISBN number, and DVD’s, Digital Games, CD’s as long as they have a bar code. If you collect more than 5kg of items, you qualify for a courier collection which is a safe and contactless way to get rid of unwanted items whilst maintaining social distancing and staying safe. We are launching this now, for Giving Tuesday but we hope it will continue throughout the year.
- Created: 19 October 2020
Please watch our short film about wildlife gardening.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvcRvGl-Q5Y
We are challenging you to find your dandelions and take photographs of the insects that visit them. We explain all about the importance of dandelions in the film. They are great for spotting insects because they grow on waste ground and pavements, so even if you don’t have a garden you can still spot things when you are out and about on your daily exercise. They are starting to go to seed now so if they have, grab a handful to plant for next year and maybe take a photograph of the beautiful ‘dandelion clocks’. Email us at (which email? This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. )
- Created: 19 October 2020
Children and families can now join a special website created by environmental charity Stroud Valleys Project to help learn about the natural world around them. The site, called www.wildclassrooms.org is based around the challenge to see if participants can spot 60 different types of plants and animals in a year. Clare Mahdiyone, Chief Executive of Stroud Valleys Project said, "In a recent Dutch study they found that primary aged school children have difficulties identifying common native animals, with on average the children in the sample identifying only 35% of the species correctly! It is so important to be able to recognise the animals and plants around us because, to quote the acclaimed nature writer, Robert Macfarlane, 'We find it hard to love what we cannot give a name to. And what we do not love we will not save.”
- Created: 01 April 2020
Five Valleys team collaborates with Stroud Valleys Project - Retail shopping at Five Valleys, Stroud
Click here to see what happened when Stroud’s Five Valley’s shopping centre had a festive grotto. The popular yurt grotto was open to young shoppers in the run up to Christmas over two weekends and raised funds for our charity :
Five Valleys team collaborates with Stroud Valleys Project - Retail shopping at Five Valleys, Stroud
Jordan Jumpman Pro AJ12.5- Created: 06 February 2020
Everyone wants more trees! We will
be planting trees with lots of community groups and landowners in the Stroud area. We have just received delivery of a further 2,000 trees – bringing our total to 3,200 - and are in the process of organising tree planting workshops around the district over the next 2 months. Our Wild About Trees planting project has been supported by local donors, Environment Agency and last week we received funding from The National Lottery, enabling us to plant trees both this season and next. Do contact us if you are interested in getting involved in planting or if you have land suitable for planting trees. If you would like to donate to our Wild About Trees tree planting project you can make a donation via our website or in our eco shop, or you can purchase a £10 tree gift voucher in the shop.
- Created: 22 January 2020
Press release from Stroud District Council dated 27 November 2019
Wild flowers, trees and seating will transform a former Stroud District Council garage site as part of a project to improve three canalside areas in Stonehouse.
As part of the re-wilding project, Great Crested newts are set to get a new pond at another site, and a third site will also provide new habitat for bees.
Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust has started working on the Wild Towns project, which has received funding from the European Regional Development Fund and is being match funded by Stroud District Council and Stonehouse Town Council.
Asics Onitsuka Tiger- Created: 02 December 2019
