What are the Friends of Burgess Hill Green Circle Network?
The Green Circle is a ring of green sites around the edge of Burgess Hill. Some belong to Burgess Hill Town Council, others to Mid Sussex District Council.
KEY TO SITES: 1) Bedelands LNR. 2) Nightingale Lane Meadows. 3) Hammonds Ridge Meadows. 4) Henry Burt Wood.5) Malthouse Lane Meadows. 6) Pookebourne Stream & Balancing Pond. 7) Rugby Club. 8) Grassmere Meadow.9) Pangdean Lane Meadows. 10) Fairfield Recreation Ground (St. John’s Common). 11) Sussex Way. 21) Batchelors Farm.22) West Park Nature Reserve. 25) Railway Fields. 41) Ancient Woodland W of Bedelands. 42) Roman Meadow.
The Green Circle Network is a series of footpaths, cycle tracks and bridleways linking the green sites to one another and to the town centre. These make it possible to travel without using cars or following roads. They also provide “green corridors” so that non-flying wildlife can move between the green sites instead of being stranded on one site and dying out completely. About half of this Green Circle is still in the planning stage.
The Friends of Burgess Hill Green Circle Network is a registered charity. We are all unpaid volunteers. We manage and improve these sites on behalf of the landowners for the benefit of wildlife and for the enjoyment and education of the whole community. We carry out conservation work and wildlife surveys, which are actually great fun, as well as organising open air events, guided walks and talks and our annual Children’s Safari.
Recent projects include a length of dry stone wall for lizards, pond dredging and building a dipping platform on Bedelands, as well as sowing a wildflower meadow area on Batchelors Farm. Find more details of these under Recent Projects.
We want to encourage everyone to make use of these beautiful spaces, whether they are schools using them for occasional, open air lessons, young people pursuing Duke of Edinburgh Award courses, dog walkers and those who seek exercise or simply pure enjoyment. All we ask is that you don’t spoil them for others by causing damage or leaving litter.
Our slide shows on this page will give you a taster of what can be found. You can also look up each site to discover more about it.