Adderwell Water Meadow, Frome

We have a rare opportunity to acquire a privately-owned riverside meadow close to the centre of Frome and secure it as a public space for people and nature. 

It costs £75,000 to acquire the land and create better access. The good news is that Frome Town Council and Friends of River Frome, a small charity,  working together have already secured the first £50,000. 

Now we need donations, big or small, to help us reach the remaining £25,000 to acquire the freehold of the land. 

The project includes improving access to the meadow and much of the existing riverside path willbe secured for public access at last . Care will be given to establishing new habitats for wildlife and striking a good balance between the interests of humans and wildllife.

If we can exceed our target we'll be able get on with improving the site straight away, including establishing a family-friendly picnic area, extending the boardwalk, and educational and conservation projects.

Where is Adderwell Water Meadow?

The water meadow is located near Wallbridge between the railway line and the river, in the lovely Somerset town of Frome, UK.

It's surprisingly close to the centre of town, about 15 minutes walk. There's already a beautiful, if rather muddy, riverside path and an important aspect of this project is to create much better access from the Retreat so that families and children can reach the meadow more easily. The meadow and access path will have permanent rights of access. An application for the existing riverside path to be designated as a public right of way, running all the way to Blatchbridge, is under consideration by Somerset Council.

What is a water meadow?

Since mediaeval times, meadows adjacent to rivers have been allowed to "drown" in the winter to reduce flooding risks downstream. If Adderwell Meadow did not flood, Wallbridge and the centre of town would be much more likely to be inundated when there is heavy rain, which is becoming more likely as a result of global heating.

Water meadows are a distinctive wetland habitat for wildlife. The well-watered ground has lush growth in the spring. Already we regularly see green woodpeckers, sparrow hawks, kingfishers, dippers, as well as slow-worms, otters and beavers. The meadow is opposite the Rodden Nature Reserve on the other bank so the whole area is becoming an important haven for wildlife as the town expands.

A community partnership

Friends of River Frome (FoRF) is working closely with Frome Town Council (FTC) to deliver this project which will have wide benefits across the town. The land will actually be purchased by the Council and the ownership will then be permanently transferred to The Theodora Ann Le Gros Trust which is dedicated to preserving Frome's open spaces for the benefit of the community forever. The Trust already owns The Dippy and other open spaces in Frome. This will ensure the site has permanent protection from housing or any other kind of commercial development, with guaranteed public access. 

FORF and FTC will develop a vision for the site, including how to achieve a good balance between the interests of humans and wildlilfe.  FTC will do the day-to-day maintenance. FoRF volunteers will carry out specific projects and monitor water quality and species to see how the habitat improvements benefit wildlife including birds, invertebrates and our local population of beavers.

Going further

Once the meadow is in public hands we hope to:

• Extend the wheelchair-accessible boardwalk under the railway bridge at Adderwell
• Install recreational facilities, such as benches and a small picnic site to enable the site to be better enjoyed by families and children
• Provide new signage and interpretation boards with information about local history and wildlife

In the long term plans to build a new bridge linking Edmund Park and the station become easier.

These depend on addiitonal funding, so if we exceed out initial target we can get on with these straightaway.

Who are Friends of the River Frome?

Friends of the Somerset River Frome is an active group of volunteers with expert knowledge of the river, and a registered charity (No. 1062090). It works to improve, protect and celebrate the Somerset River Frome. We do everything from river clean- ups and water testing, to negotiating with developers to protect the river. 

From climate change, to farming, to development, the river Frome will face many challenges in the next decade. FoRF secured agreement from Frome Town Council to pursue a River Strategy 2020-2030 designed to address these problems.