Cramlington and District Red Squirrel group (CADRS) is a volunteer conservation group that protects our native red squirrel in South East Northumberland. Without our conservation efforts, this red-listed, endangered mammal would disappear locally, much as it has disappeared in almost all areas in England. Our 50 volunteers work hard to ensure our reds survival and we are delighted to say that we have been successful! Since the group's inception 10 years ago with only 3 volunteers, we have grown from strength to strength and thankfully our red squirrel population has grown too. We now have reports of red squirrel sightings across our area and beyond where they haven't been seen for many, many years.
CADRS adopted East Cramlington Nature Reserve as a base 5 years ago. We inherited an old storage container which is now full of holes and not fit for purpose, we would love to replace it with a larger container and maybe have a small kitchen as well as more storage space. We hold regular 'activity days' at the nature reserve, inviting the local community, youth groups, and other wildlife/nature enthusiasts along to help with the upkeep and maintenance within the nature reserve itself.
East Cramlington Nature Reserve is a lovely green space situated in a manly urban area. Historically, a remnant from our area's mining past, complete with a vast pit heap, the 35-hectare space has been transformed and now offers many wooded areas, open grassland, a small lake and wetland. It is home to a great variety of wildlife, including of course the elusive and rare red squirrel. Our volunteers have completed several projects in the nature reserve during our tenure. We have constructed a wildlife viewing screen, erected 2 red squirrel rope bridges across the busy adjacent road, and planted well over 1000 native trees as well as a wildflower walkway. A QR-coded 'Ben Nixon' nature trail with rubbing plaques for our younger visitors was completed last year and was well used in a fun Egg hunt on Easter Sunday.
The nature reserve is very popular with walkers, cyclists, horseriders, dog owners, families, wildlife enthusiasts, and photographers with thousands of visitors every year. Upkeep of the area is important for safety but also local pride. At the moment our maintenance and education equipment can't be stored on site because of the damp inside the container. A new larger, dry storage space would be so much easier and safer, especially on our popular activity days.
