Events at the Reserve
As Covid-19 restrictions recede in the memory, our usual programme of events still remains somewhat reduced but we are endeavouring to build it back up to its former extent gradually and safely. You can view our current programme in the following live calendar.
For our adult members, the first Saturday of each month is the customary date for our natural history field meetings, where an expert guide accompanies you around the reserve and shares their knowledge of the flora and fauna of Perivale Wood.
For younger members, the Rangers and Rangers Plus programmes are now back to their best and well worth exploring.
During the winter, we plan to resume talks at the Bluebell Centre with a varied range of topics focussing on different aspects of nature and natural history. The talks include a chance to chat informally over refreshments.
Schools and Education Groups
For schools and education groups, we run a thriving environmental education programme which offers the opportunity for teaching staff to bring groups into the reserve to learn about the natural world.
For more information, visit our education website at perivalewood.org.uk
Family Events
We have an extensive programme of natural history events at the reserve for our younger members (up to the age of 16). The Perivale Wood Rangers’ events are held on the second Saturday of each month 2-4pm and are led by trained volunteers. There is a group for ages 3-9 (Rangers) and a group for ages 10+ (Rangers Plus), but note, all children who come along must be accompanied by a parent or adult carer.
Follow us at facebook.com/perivalewoodrangers for more information about the Rangers events.
Open Days
In April each year, we throw open our gates to the public in a series of Open Days with limited, ticketed entries so as to make it a more congenial, less crowded experience than in previous years. Tickets can be obtained from the Eventbrite website at the beginning of April and cost £5 per adult (£3 concessions) and £2 for children aged between 3 and 16 (children under 3 are free). This series of open days is a great opportunity for you to view the millions of bluebells on show, and to learn about the reserve and about our conservation work. Teas, coffees and cakes will be on sale.
Conservation Days
Day to day management of the reserve is an important part of our work and we need plenty of help! Conservation days take place at Perivale Wood on the second Sunday of each month and most Tuesdays. Come along if you’d like to help maintain and improve the natural features of the woodland, ponds and pastures. Tasks include coppicing, hedge laying and scrub clearing: you’ll be made welcome by our volunteer team and have the opportunity to learn new skills in a friendly environment. For more information, email us at conservation@selbornesociety.org.uk
Science, Heritage and Research
Many of our members have a deep interest in a specific area of natural history and we encourage Society members to use the reserve for study and research. We already have a small library of our own publications on topics including the flora and lepidoptera of Perivale Wood. We also have over 60 nestboxes in the reserve which are monitored each year, and young are ringed and recorded. Ringing of birds in the wider reserve also takes place several times a year.
Members and visitors also take part in Citizen Science by recording what they see in the reserve, with results contributing to local and national records. We have been a base for Field Studies Centre training courses in observing and recording, which is work we want to extend in future.
Two archaeological digs on the site, carried out by the Perivale Wood Heritage & Archaeology Group, have provided new insights into the history of the land, and help us to see the site in the wider context of the surrounding area.
