In 2021, members of the Winterslow Church congregation founded their own Eco Church. Since then, they have held regular meetings throughout 2022 and 2023 to plan ways in which their church can contribute to the improvement of the environment as part of caring for God's creation.
In their quest to improve the immediate environment of the church, they have sought innovative ways to reduce their carbon footprint and care for the planet. They have done this by using sustainable products within the church and reviewing their heating plan. Recently, they have looked at ways in which they can increase the biodiversity of the churchyard.
This latter project has been conducted with expert help from Mike d'Apice, and included wildlife surveys of the churchyard, leaving areas of long grass and wildflowers, clearing rough areas and sowing them with wildflower seed, installing water butts for use in the graveyard, allowing the construction of compost areas and bug hotels, as well as initiating planning for a churchyard pond.
The Eco Church facilitate community outreach by hosting talks by wildlife and ecological experts, holding wildlife activities within the churchyard for youth groups such as Cubs, and working with local schools to promote ecological awareness.,The core church members have also been active in writing for the Parish Magazine about simple changes to modern lifestyles that can contribute toward reducing waste and improving biodiversity.
In addition to their work in the church, they have forged links with other ecologically-minded members of the community, as well as some local farmers. This year the parish was awarded an A Rocha Bronze Eco Church award for its efforts.
Carmen Greenlees a member of the Winterslow Church Eco Church group said: "In the future, we hope to consolidate what we have achieved so far, and strive towards Silver, by improving the energy efficiency of the Church if possible, installing a churchyard pond, and working more closely with our local community, especially famers and landowners to support an ecological mindset / cultural shift in the way our local community lives within nature."
If you are working towards an A Rocha award or want to share some top eco tips, email comms@salisbury.anglican.org