In the meadow we have sown a large area of seeds with native annuals in our national colours of Red, White and Blue as a mark of respect for the centenary of the start of WW1. We have put a seat nearby to enable us to sit and reflect on the influences this has had on our families over the years.

We have again been awarded a David Bellamy Gold Award for Conservation. We are the only residential park to have gained the award for 14 consecutive years. Residents comments, cards and pictures played an important role in gaining our award and it is through the consistent efforts of everyone on the park that we earn the award. Extract From David Bellamy Letter “I am writing to congratulate you and your team on your fantastic gold award. You should be very proud of the work you have done to help Britain’s wildlife – which, as you know, needs all the help it can get at the moment. Having read through your assessment, I’d just like to say that I am particularly impressed by the effectiveness of your butterfly garden and by the fact that your owners’ gardens are well looked after and attract a lot of wildlife. Give them all a cheer from me.”  

We organised a special briefing with Age UK Kesteven for the Residents of the park on the support services which are available to them in south Lincolnshire. The well attended briefing was delivered by support experts Teresa Stevens and Nicky McNulty, they outlined ways in which the charity assists older folk including services such as help in the home, advice on staying fit and healthy, meeting new friends.

We held a successful Open Weekend receiving positive comments on the parks location, setting and layout.

As First Responders become more qualified, they are able to attend call outs that involve children and babies. The money has purchased a junior resuscitation mannequin, Charlie, as well as two baby resuscitation mannequins, Freddy and Fredericka. These training aids will be beneficial in training the different techniques used in treating children and babies. It is reassuring to know that there will be more LIVES First Responders able to attend incidents where children and babies are involved. Any remaining money went towards new uniforms for the group. The residents and owners of The Orchards Park have raised over £11,000 since April 2000 for LIVES. There are now two LIVES First Responder groups in Ruskington. All the money raised in an area goes to the local group. Some of the LIVES volunteers are looking towards a career in medical professions. If there are sufficient First Responders to man the rota, a 999 call will also activate the local First Responder volunteer. They arrive in a very short space of time with a defibrillator, oxygen as well as other equipment. It is reassuring to have them in attendance, knowing that, if necessary, they will use the equipment to help to keep the patient alive until the ambulance and paramedics arrive. Sometimes it is difficult for them to find the property. PLEASE HAVE YOUR HOUSE NUMBER CLEARLY VISIBLE FROM THE ROAD. If at night, please put all lights on to attract attention. EVERY SECOND COUNTS in saving a life. If you are interested in volunteering for any LIVES First Responders group, please contact LIVES HQ telephone 01507 525999.

Thank you to everyone who completed cards. We are one of only two residential parks to have gained the award for 13 years. They play an important role in gaining our award, and the photographs showed how everyone cares. Gaining our 13th Gold award shows that it is the consistent efforts of everyone that earns the award. Buzzards have been seen catching rabbits in the meadow, and then dining in gardens! Due to the wet weather we were let down by the local farmer cutting the hay. Bob and Mack walk round the meadow most days. He has kindly agreed to write a quarterly newsletter. We hope that you are encouraged to walk and experience the sights and sounds of the visitors in the meadow. “On my regular daily walks round the country park, winter can be seen to be slowly overtaking autumn. The leaves on the trees are almost gone and the bird song is almost non-existent. The field fare have arrived back on the park from their summer sites across the North Sea, they will spend the winter feeding here until they return there in the late spring. They are very noisy with their “cha-cha-chack” call as they fly away. Our regular green woodpeckers often greet me with their laughing calls as I disturb them on my walk around the park with Mack. Whilst quite a rare bird in a lot of areas, we are very lucky to have 3 or 4 green woodpeckers that live on the park and feed on the ants and larvae. The quietness of the park is also broken by the chatter and squabbling of large families of long tailed tits, which I believe gather together in the winter and huddle together for warmth. The buzzards have really settled in our area and are hunting quite low whilst being harassed by rooks, crows and even seagulls attacking them. With the onset of spring the rabbit population grew, however the young rabbits will fall prey to the buzzards and keep down the rabbit population naturally. It is wonderful to see the buzzards soar up into the sky on a thermal, giving out its shrill, mewing cry of “pee-oo” Bob

Ruskington is situated in the area covered by North Kesteven District Council. It is reassuring that the quality of life that we enjoy and have come to expect, has been recognised in a recent survey by the Halifax Bank relating to the quality of life throughout the country. The bank has listed district areas on a number of criteria relating to quality of life. North Kesteven District Council is ranked 36 out of the top 50 and is the only area of Lincolnshire included. It is the most northerly of only four districts away from the south or east of England. The report is based chiefly on the quality of the housing market, health, jobs, crime and education. North Kesteven performed well due to the low incidence of burglary (the 8th lowest of the 50 areas), ease of traffic movement, housing size, quality and cost, low population density (only Rutland having a lower figure), good employment rate, small primary school class size, and high academic achievements at GCSE. As our brochure says- ”Discover for yourself the hidden qualities of Lincolnshire and enjoy a slower pace of life.”

The Orchards Park is proud to announce that we have been awarded Gold in the David Bellamy Conservation Awards for the twelfth consecutive year.Granted only to parks which have demonstrated a sound commitment to the natural world, the David Bellamy Conservation Awards are described by Professor Bellamy as the ‘Green Olympics’ – and only go to parks which help protect and enhance the natural environment. Professor Bellamy commented: “Parks like this are creating wildlife wonderlands, and its time they were given well-deserved recognition for their environmental commitment.”  

Two of our talented residents are raising money for LIVES (Lincolnshire Integrated Voluntary Emergency Services). Dorothy has designed and painted  a card that shows the birds that visit her garden, and Jean’s poem below: Trees and Shrubs a plenty, flowers by the score, Butterflies and bumblebees, who could ask for more? Bird song in the morning, through until it’s dark, Just some of the many pleasures, of life on THE ORCHARDS PARK… All proceeds go to LIVES First Responders. Since the year 2000, the Residents of The Orchards have raised £10,000.