Woodland at Heartwood Forest accessible to all

The Woodland Trust has created a hard surface all ability trail, welcome panels, a map, signs and waymarked posts at Heartwood Forest near St Albans.

Wildflower meadows have also been seeded next to the new route, and some of the funding from The Veolia Environmental Trust has been used to create fencing to stop bluebells being tramped.

A grant of almost £70,000 was awarded by the trust through the Landfill Communities Fund, to the woodland charity, which is a fairly new beautiful woodland nestled in the middle of London’s greenbelt area.

It was created with the help of community volunteers and is now home to a host of wildlife.

It takes £200,000 a year to maintain the forest for the enjoyment of local people and Heartwood is supported by individual donors, charitable trusts and several organisations incuding Disney Store UK, the Forestry Commission and Biffa Award.

Site manager for the Woodland Trust, Louise Neicho, said: “The latest changes to Heartwood Forest have really helped in making the woods a place that everyone can enjoy.

“I hope more locals will take advantage of our new all-accessibility trail and take a trip to Heartwood, especially during the warm spring and summer months.”

Executive director of The Veolia Environmental Trust, Paul Taylor, said: “This important project is a perfect example of how the Landfill Communities Fund can open up woodlands like the Heartwood Forest.

“It is great to hear that the work is now complete and that many more people will now be able to enjoy the forest all year round.”