Old Colwyn Working Together

A  partnership between the Old Colwyn East residents’ association and the Colwyn Parish Church Council was formed in September 2004. The original concept was to replace the ageing hedge with metal railings as the original railings had been removed for the war effort. Permission to remove the hedge in a conservation area required the introduction of wildlife habitat. It was considered a fitting location to have a wildlife garden.

Now in March 2009, the garden has benefited from over 4050 hours of community voluntary work and over £33,000 from a variety of funding sources.

Two of the three seats in the garden were placed by the project; also, two litter bins. Bird and bat boxes were introduced. The trees were trimmed and also part of the path around the church was reinstated.

A butterfly garden was introduced with a butterfly interpretation panel. Various borders were introduced and stocked with native plants donated by Conwy Council Parks and Gardens Department. Shrubs and plants were also donated from local people and other sources.

An interpretation panel has been installed in the garden to explain the project and detail some of the history of the church. The garden is appreciated by both local people and visitors as a wonderful centre to the village. It has been visited by a number of groups intending to develop their own garden projects and has been a source of inspiration. Moreover, the garden has enhanced the appearance of the church and village significantly and is a popular venue for weddings and other family services.

Over three years, the garden has been successful in the Snowdonia Wildlife Garden, Wales in Bloom, Tidy Wales, Green Pennant and Colwyn in Bloom competitions. A warm welcome is extended to all visitors; for more information visit www.oldcolwyneast.co.uk

 You must take the time to visit this site its excellent,

if you are luky you may well see Dave and his good lady hard at work, and I bet that they would be more than heppy to give you a tour around the gardens

On Saturday 19th September 2009 St John’s Church and garden in Old Colwyn was the venue for a successful “Gardening for Wildlife” open day.

Over 120 adults and children attended during the day and there was interest for all.

There were photographic displays to educate people about the care of wildlife provided by Anna Williams, Wildlife Gardening Officer of North Wales Wildlife Trust. Anna also arranged activities for the many young people who attended such as making insect homes and identification of species. These were very popular activities.

Anna Williams organises the Snowdonia Wildlife Gardening Competition and St John's Garden has previously won the Community Garden section. Details of the competition can be found on the Snowdonia National Park website at http://www.gardenforwildlife.co.uk/