A Vision for Queenswood and Bodenham Lake
September 2014
Introduction
During a series of meetings and public events during the consultation about the
possibility of a Community Asset Transfer of Queenswood and Bodenham Lake, we
have articulated and developed the following vision for the sites.
The vision is a series of ideas and possibilities for the long term; they are not specific
proposals. We do not suggest that our ideas are fully formed but we are committed to
establishing their feasibility and – if they prove viable – to endeavouring to implement
them.
The Vision
The purpose of our vision for Queenswood and Bodenham Lake is that the
sites will increasingly serve:
 to raise public awareness of issues surrounding sustainable
development
 to demonstrate that promoting human wellbeing and the conservation/
flourishing of wildlife are worthwhile and inter-related objectives and
that these aims can be achieved whilst achieving economic viability.
 to showcase a range of sustainability and conservation initiatives, in
practice
We appreciate Queenswood and Bodenham Lake as unique natural assets and
places of intrinsic beauty. We aim to ensure that their essence is maintained and
carefully developed. We will ensure that the Sites of Special Scientific Interest
(SSSI), the arboretum, the overall woodland, the lake and its environ are all carefully
managed to enhance biodiversity; thereby preserving their beauty and character
whilst promoting respectful use by the public.
We would endeavour to develop Queenswood and Bodenham Lake into
demonstration sites that showcase key aspects of a sustainable Herefordshire - a
vibrant, healthy, naturally flourishing and resilient county. In particular, we would aim
to:
Appreciation of/ Affinity with Nature
 Help to promote public appreciation of the health benefits of engaging with
nature and promote a deeper respect for wildlife and the natural environment.
 Enhance people’s awareness of natural beauty; enhancing their experience

and making it more conscious by interpretation boards, guided walks and a
range of educational programmes (adding to the excellent existing activities,
see below).
Use the woods and the lake to promote wellbeing for the less privileged
sections of our community, including the physically disabled, learning
disabled, alienated and temporarily unwell. This may include activities such
as sailing for the disabled, and aspects of care farming.
Biodiversity
 Improve further the long-term ecological integrity of the sites. Both
Queenswood and Bodenham Lake are blessed with wonderful biodiversity,
but this can be enhanced by (for example) ensuring that European protected
species e.g. bats and dormice are fully considered.
 Seek to ensure protection of species like otter, at Bodenham Lake, improving
habitats, as well as improving public access and viewing facilities, etc.
 Actively manage Queenswood as a working woodland, through supporting
the development of a co-operative of woodland workers, to promote
biodiversity and produce sustainable products
Economics
 Demonstrate that the pursuit of ecological enhancement and human
wellbeing in the development of these sites does not have to be funded by
the public purse – and that the sites can be made financially self sustaining
by adopting an entrepreneurial, social enterprise approach, which benefits the
community and the local economy.
Tourism
 Build on the popularity of Queenswood (already the most visited single site in
Herefordshire) and work in partnership with others to develop Herefordshire
as a green tourist destination and one of the sustainable development centres
of the UK.
 Help attract inward investment from individuals and businesses keen to avail
themselves of the marketing opportunities this presents
Food
 Promote a localised food economy in which residents become more engaged
in how their food is produced; its effects on their health and its impact on the
environment, including carbon emissions and water quality / use. This
supports the Herefordshire Food Partnership’s work and their Sustainable
Food Strategy.
 Encourage the café at Queenswood to be an exemplar of this – promoting
local (and where appropriate, Fairtrade) ethically produced food and
communicating the environmental and health benefits of this.
 Create a food retail outlet (perhaps similar to but smaller than the Ludlow
Food centre), showcasing the best of Herefordshire’s produce.
Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy Generation
 Apply for finance to retrofit the existing buildings to the highest standards of
efficiency – and to ensure that any new buildings commissioned are built as
demonstrations of best practice energy efficiency, renewable energy
generation and water use. These visible exemplars will help the public to
understand what is possible with both existing and new buildings and the
financial and wellbeing benefits.
 Install heating systems at both locations using renewable heating
technologies. Queenswood will, over time, also become a source of
sustainably produced, wildlife-friendly wood fuel.
Education
 Develop the unique natural settings of Queenswood and Bodenham lake as
beautiful centres of deep and experiential learning. We aim to work in
partnership with educational providers (potentially including the New
University of Herefordshire and the proposed University for Wellbeing) to
optimise the uptake of these opportunities.
 Build an education & visitors’ centre at Queenswood, which would offer a
range of revolving exhibitions and a growing variety of short courses and
other educational initiatives (eg: coppicing, hurdle making, flower & tree
identification, fungal foraging, green woodworking, ornithology, art work etc).
 Develop and market a calendar of events, which entice new visitors to these
locations, in the belief that they will be inspired when they come. These
activities will build upon current and previous activities at both sites and
learning from successful pre-existing initiatives like HWT’s nationally
recognised LEMUR apprenticeships, and Wildplay which works with schools,
parents and teachers across the county.
 Ideally, also acquire funding and permissions to develop a purpose built
education centre at Bodenham Lake for use by small groups in a tranquil
environment to follow on from the “taster course” they will have sampled at
the Queenswood centre.
Community
 Involve as broad a sector of the community as possible in the running and
development of Queenswood and Bodenham Lake through our membership
scheme, advisory board and a range of other communication and
engagement approaches
 Create a sense of ownership, mutual responsibility and social cohesion
around the sites – and around the sustainability principles that they will
increasingly exemplify.