Nailsea’s secret garden has Green Flag status

Nailsea’s own secret garden, Trendlewood Park, has had a Green Flag status since 2012 yet many people in the town are not even aware of the park. Why not get out and get some fresh air and explore this area of Nailsea?

The Green Flag Award® scheme recognises and rewards well-managed parks and green spaces, setting the benchmark standard for the management of recreational outdoor spaces across the United Kingdom and around the world.

Winning a Green Flag Award® brings with it a wealth of benefits, from the status of being affiliated with a prestigious awards programme, through to the tangible benefits such as recognising and rewarding staff and volunteers, promoting the site and sharing good practice. Applications are made on an annual basis, with each site receiving a detailed feedback report following an assessment by industry professionals.

The ‘Friends of Trendlewood Park’ is a voluntary group which manages Trendlewood Community Park in partnership with North Somerset Council (NSC).

The Friends are always looking for more volunteers and meet on the 3rd Tuesday of each month, 10am – 1pm at The Old Farmhouse. If you are interested please feel free to join the Friends on one of these days. Or, if you would like to find out more please email the friends on contact@friendsoftrendlewoodpark.org.uk , complete the contact form on the website https://friendsoftrendlewoodpark.org.uk/contact-us/

The park comprises of four acres of woodland, a well-equipped play area and 10 acres of grassland, trees and hedges with a network of public footpaths and a bridleway. The attached map details the location of the park.

Much of the woodland in the park originates from Trendlewood Quarry, which produced Pennant Sandstone from the 1850s to the 1930s. Remains of the quarrying can be found in the area of the park known as Nowhere Wood. The Pennant Sandstone exposure in the wood is listed as a Regionally Important Geological Site (RIGS). A geologist member of the Friends has written an informative article describing the site, its geology and quarrying history. His article includes photographs of the many ways in which Pennant Sandstone has been used in the local area.

The Friends work hard to keep this lovely area clear, however they are sometimes plagued by vandalism and anti-social behaviour which can result in rubbish and potentially hazardous material being left. These incidents are being monitored by the police and NSC Community Support Officers. If you explore this area of Nailsea and see anything that doesn’t look right, do contact the police on the non-urgent number 101 . You can call this number to report a crime that has already happened, or to give information about a crime that has been committed.

Pat Gilbert – Chair of the Friends said ‘Friends had an eventful year, and, with NSC support, some significant changes have taken place in the way we work. After almost 25 years of looking after Nowhere Wood and subsequently Trendlewood Park we have handed over more demanding park management tasks we do to the North Somerset Green team. In 2024 we want to extend awareness of the park and its facilities to schools, youth groups and the NHS.

Most park users enjoy the park and its environment, but, unfortunately, there have been occasional instances of anti-social behaviour in the park , mostly at night. Dealing with anti-social behaviour in the park is tricky, as the damage takes place in secret.
However, despite some incidents, the park provides a home for a wide variety of birds, plants, mammals, insects and other invertebrates and so you never know what wildlife you can spot on your walks and exploring. Please contact us if you would like to support the amazing work we do in this park.’