All Posts

Jack Wood - Stoney Alley & The Green Chain Walk 16th October 2026 It was a rainy start to Friday, and it looked as though our Woodland Conservation session might be a little on the moist side! When we arrived to collect our tools, the two wheelbarrows had already accumulated several inches of water in the bottom. Fortunately, the forecast was right: the rain stopped around 10 am, and by the time our 17 volunteers split into three teams and set off for their activity locations

Hotel Field Saturday, 10th October 2026 What a beautiful day Saturday turned out to be! Dry, sunny and pleasantly mild – that’s perfect weather for woodland conservation work. We also had a fantastic turn-out, with 14 volunteers giving their time to help conserve and improve Oxleas Woodlands. That’s another 42 volunteer hours dedicated to looking after this wonderful area! Look who turned up to help - some Goodgym Volunteers - Thank You! This session, we moved out of the wood

Castle Wood Meadow Friday, 9 October 2026 Last Friday, three of our Woodland Conservation Leaders returned to Castle Wood Meadow to continue the maintenance and restoration work they began with Barclays' volunteers around 18 months ago. Fifteen volunteers turned out, including two who had joined us previously and encouraged their colleagues to come along. What a fantastic response! Together, they helped contribute a combined total of 100 volunteer hours to caring for this bea

Oxleas Wood Saturday, 3rd October 2026 A beautiful day, thirteen keen volunteers, and an expansive meadow and woodland to meander through, chatting to others and collecting litter as they go. What could be better for the soul? The black rubbish sacks pinned to trees in the dark wooded area beside Oxleas Car Park are definitely having a positive impact – reducing the amount of litter on the ground and trapped among the brambles. This, in turn, helps prevent plastics from break

Jack Wood 2nd October 2026 Our first October session of the year and the sun was still shining! Temperatures were in the 20s – way above average for the time of year – so our volunteers made the most of another beautiful day in the woods. After spending the previous couple of sessions in Oxleas Wood, preparing the next stretch of the coppicing area for the season, we returned ‘home’ to Jack Wood for this session, with three key tasks on our list. First – and arguably most imp

Shepherdleas Wood Tuesday, 22nd September 2026 Getting Ahead! Our aim for our September session was to get ahead of the autumn wind and rain that turn the paths into a muddy swamp around the Falconwood entrance to Shepherdleas Wood. This involved a range of activities, so it was all hands to the deck, splitting ourselves between three core activities. Ditches, Bridges and Culverts Much of the water in the woods flows into a culvert in this area via ditches, before leaving the

September 2026 What a wonderful day Friday turned out to be for the Friends of Oxleas Woodlands! While our Woodland Conservation Volunteers were beavering away in Oxleas Wood, five of our session leaders excused themselves from the hard graft and slipped off to the RHS London in Bloom Awards Ceremony at Kensington and Chelsea Town Hall. Absolutely Over the Moon! 🏆 Our results Community Award 🥇 Gold – Community Garden - Jackwood Wildlife Garden It’s Our Neighbourhood Awards

We spent Saturday in Jackwood, tidying up after the heat of summer.

Oxleas Wood - Stream Bed Clearance Saturday, 12 September 2026 Saturday was a mild and sunny day, so it was ideal for working on the stream-bed – without water, of course! Teamwork! Thirteen volunteers attended, including the Explorer Scout Leader and five of his Scouts. We also had another very welcome addition – someone on holiday from Ireland, visiting his daughter, one of our weekend volunteers! What a wonderful way to spend time together and, what’s more, he thoroughly e

On Friday, six volunteers gathered in Castle Wood Rose Garden for another session of summer maintenance

The Friends of Oxleas Woodlands Steering Group met on 2 September to review progress across our conservation work, membership, finances and future plans. Here are some of the key updates.

Oxleas Wood Friday, 4th September 2026 What a difference in the weather these last few days. On Friday morning, our volunteers awoke to gusts of up to 35 mph, followed closely by lashing rain. Our leaders quickly got into action, messaging each other to ensure that the session could take place and suggesting alternative locations if it was considered unsafe to proceed in the planned work area. Old Blackbird's Nest During the night, one volunteer, whose home backs onto the

Rochester and Welling Ways Saturday, 5th September 2026 As anyone who regularly uses these routes will know, the edges of the woodlands in this area are a real litter hotspot. This means our Litter Picking Group visits them more regularly than some of the other areas of the woodlands. On this occasion, the area to the right of Welling Way, heading towards Welling itself, was particularly badly affected. Just some of the rubbish collected. Our regular team of nine volunteers w

Shepherdleas Wood Tuesday, 25th August 2026 This session a group of 7 volunteers returned to the slopes behind Berry Hill to continue their work in an area we call ‘The Glade’. Clearing dense undergrowth from the woodland floor to enable light to penetrate. What is a glade? A glade is a small, open area within the woodland that will provide a valuable mixture of light, warmth and different vegetation. As you will be aware, much of the canopy in the woodlands is quite dense

Oxleas Wood Friday, 28th August 2026 Looking Ahead! It was down the hill and along the ride in Oxleas Wood for our 16 volunteers on Friday, making an interesting change from their regular workplace in Jack Wood. As usual, there was plenty of chatting as we wheeled the barrows and carried some rather heavy tools, making the long walk seem not quite so noticeable – at least not on the outward journey! What to do and how! Despite recent weather, we are already planning for our a

Thank you to David for leading the gardening session in Castle Wood Rose Garden on Sunday, and for writing this blog.

Jack Wood Friday, 14th August 2026 Another hot day meant, not surprisingly, a slightly smaller group – but we were delighted to see 12 volunteers turn up to help improve the woodlands. Sensibly, our plan was to take things at a steady pace, have plenty of hydration breaks, take our usual break a little earlier at 11 am, and finish at noon – an hour earlier than usual, before the heat really got going. We returned to the protected area close to Castle Wood Meadow, where we cou