35 years ago, the Reed Pond was an attractive, well maintained and popular visiting place for villagers and visitors alike.
The pond itself was well kept and as the vegetation surrounding the pond was only a fraction of the height and depth it is today, the array of ducks, geese and other wild birds could easily be viewed from the bank. The meadow was allowed to flourish with wildflowers and meadow grass, which was cut each year, to promote further growth the next year and to keep weeds to a minimum. The path through the meadow was cut and kept at a level that walkers could pass through easily. Children would go ‘Conkering’ in the Autumn, with the best conkers to be found below the massive Horse Chestnut tree which backed onto the gardens, by the entrance to the meadow from the Church Street path. Sadly, the tree is no longer there.
The pond at the time was owned by Mr and Mrs Burkes, who also lived in Reed Pond House. The original house was demolished and replaced by a new modern dwelling a few years ago.
When the Burkes family moved out of the village, rather than sell the land to developers, they donated the pond and meadow to the Notts Wildlife Trust, so it would be kept as a nature reserve for the good of the local wildlife and the village. A plaque on the gate out to Park Lane, says the pond was donated in 1993.
Since then, however, there had been very little, if any, maintenance or preservation of either the pond or the meadow by the Trust. Then the worst possible scenario occurred. The trust decided to sell the site, causing much distress within the village due to the fear that it may be sold to developers as building land. This was in 2019.
Thankfully, the Lambley Parish Council were very proactive and immediately entered discussions with the Trust and finally managed to buy the pond and meadow from the Trust in April of this year (2021).
With the Parish Council now in control of the pond, they quickly engaged with specialists in varying areas of expertise including tree specialists and the County council to develop a management plan for the continued upkeep and preservation of the area.
A large and sometimes noisy element of this is the herd of sheep which have been brought into the meadow to help to keep the grass levels low. So, dog walkers please be aware of their presence. Special gates have been installed to contain the sheep which have notices on them, but all dogs must be kept on leads.
So, thanks to the Lambley Parish Council for buying, managing and preserving the Reed Pond for many generations to come.