Hickling Broad and Marshes (credit: Richard Osbourne)
Broadland Local Group
A message from the Chair
The Broadland Local Group was founded in May 1978. We are an active and friendly group who are fortunate enough to live within reach of the famous Norfolk Broads, where we have access to some of NWT's best-known nature reserves and the iconic creatures which live there.
Jerry Simpson – Chair, Broadland Local Group
About our group
The group holds indoor meetings from October through to April on the second Friday of each month. These meetings usually take the form of an illustrated talk by a guest speaker, although occasionally we persuade one of our own members to talk about their travels or ask one of the NWT Broadland staff to update us on their work. We hold our AGM in December and usually invite someone from NWT HQ in Norwich to talk to us.
Our indoor meetings are held at Ingham Village Hall from 7.45pm onwards and we welcome both members and non-members to these talks. They are followed by coffee and biscuits, giving everyone in this small and friendly group a chance to chat to each other. A small charge is made for these indoor meetings, but the cost includes refreshments. A monthly raffle raises further funds for NWT to use on local reserves.
We also arrange an annual moth evening and a number of guided walks for birds, butterflies, dragonflies and other wildlife, each of which are led by local experts and open to all. We welcome members old and new, as well as visitors to the region, to join these walks, and we look forward to meeting you at one of our events.
The group produces its own local newsletter, 'The Broadland Browser', distributed twice a year in April and October to those attending our indoor meetings. The Browser lists our forthcoming events, has reports on previous outings and talks, publicises local conservation issues, and gives highlights of unusual bird sightings in the local area over the previous six months.
Ranworth Broad and Marshes (credit: Richard Osbourne)
Conservation work parties
The Broadland Local Group runs its very own team of conservation volunteers who meet monthly on a Sunday throughout the winter. They work at NWT reserves including Upton Broad & Marshes, Barton Broad and Marshes and Alderfen Broad and Marshes, at other reserves like Catfield Fen and the Ebb & Flow Marshes, and occasionally at County Wildlife Sites, to open up and restore areas of fen, reedbed and open water, by clearing scrub and having bonfires. A very welcome source of warmth in the darker months!
Tools and training are provided on site and new volunteers are always welcome. If you think you might be interested in getting some fresh air and exercise, whilst at the same time helping Norfolk's wildlife, please contact Jerry Simpson on 01692 630674 for further details.
Upton Broad and Marshes (credit: Richard Osbourne)
Our local area
Broadland is a unique expanse of East Anglia extending from east Norfolk down into Suffolk. It consists of numerous navigable waterways and sections of open water forming Britain's largest protected wetland. The broads are essentially manmade and were formed when Medieval peat diggings later became flooded. In the past, trading wherries used the waterways for transporting heavy loads, but today the remaining wherries are pleasure craft and the broads are used mainly for leisure and tourism.
Our Local Group concentrates on the northern section of Broadland, taking in the major nature reserves of the rivers Bure, Ant and Thurne. The two largest broads, Hickling and Barton, are both NWT reserves, as are the smaller broads at Upton, Ranworth, Alderfen, Cockshoot and Martham.
Around each of these stretches of open water, there are fens, marshes, reedbeds and carr woodlands making up a diverse network of wetland habitats. The region abounds with Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) and National Nature Reserves (NNRs) and the whole of Broadland is designated a Special Protection Area (SPA).
The Norfolk Broads are home to many rare and beautiful creatures including swallowtail butterflies, Norfolk hawker dragonflies, bitterns, otters and water voles. The winter raptor roost at Stubb Mill, NWT Hickling Broad can contain up to 100 marsh harriers, and more than 30 common cranes frequent the same marshes.
NWT Upton Broad and Marshes is one of the best sites in the whole county for dragonflies and has recently been extended to several times its original size.
NWT Ranworth Broad and NWT Barton Broad both have colonies of common terns that nest on specially built floating platforms, and at Barton there is also a successful heronry in the carr woodland.
Contact us
Chairman: Jerry Simpson, 01692 630674
Conservation Work Party: Jerry Simpson 01692 630674
Broadland Local Group events
