Local Groups

Aberystwyth Botanical Society are a group of like-minded people who all enjoy having a go at botany and have skills ranging from complete beginner to expert. We meet up on Saturdays and Sundays for botany based walks. The aim is to share our skills and enjoy looking at plants together. We welcome everybody and we don’t charge a membership fee! We cultivate a supportive and encouraging atmosphere, sharing lifts, lenses and field guides.

The group’s aim is to enjoy the wide variety of plants in the North of Ceredigion, sharing and expanding our knowledge of the local flora. In this we have been generously assisted by the help and expertise of our County Plant Recorders past and present – Arthur Chater and Steve Chambers. We have also had tremendous support from Aberystwyth University staff, lecturers, professional and amateur botanists of all abilities and a strong connection with local students.

Aberystwyth Botanical Society creates a yearly programme of botanical walks which the public are welcome to attend. Children are welcome, except on the occasional walk which would be unsuitable for young ones for safety reasons, (this will be stated on the programme). They must remain under the care and attention of their responsible adult at all times during our walks. Well behaved dogs on leads are allowed at the discretion of the walk leader, except, as above, when the walk is unsuitable for them, and this will also be noted on the programme.

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For more information email Chloe Griffiths, Programme Secretary

The Brecon Local Group is the newest in the WTSWW family of regional groups of wildlife enthusiasts.

There are activities throughout the year including field trips to WTSWW reserves, other local sites and places of wildlife interest further afield.

If you are interested in wildlife and would like to be kept informed of the activities of Brecon Local Group, please add your email address below.

For more information email: WTSWWBreconLocalGroup@gmail.com or call on 07957 292235.

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Join Our Committee 

If you are interested in getting involved with running our local group then drop us an email to find out more information. 

The Bridgend Group meets in the Parc Slip Wildlife Trust Visitor Centre on the first Monday of the month from September to April. In the summer months a series of walks, field trips and outings are organised. We are an active and friendly group with a full programme of activities throughout the year. We hold evening meetings on the first Monday of the month from September to April in the Visitor Centre at Parc Slip. The Coffee Shop is open from 6.30 pm for members to chat informally before the meetings begin at 7.30 pm.

In the summer months, the Group organises field trips to explore the wildlife across South Wales and beyond. The principal event is a summer coach trip which is often organised in association with another Wildlife Trust in Wales or the West of England. 

Some members of the Group are also actively involved in conservation work. In particular, we take part in work tasks at the Trust’s Coed y Bwl Nature Reserve. 

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For more information email Judith Robertshaw, Group Secretary  or join our Facebook group.

The Group holds monthly meetings from October to May. During summer months we arrange field trips to wildlife sites around Cardiff and sometimes further afield. We also hold outdoor events that are focussed on enhancing the biodiversity of Cardiff. For more information and a full programme see our website at: www.wtswwcardiff. org.uk. 

Our meetings are open to any members of the public. You don’t need to be a member to come along.

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For more information email Rob Pickford email: info@wtswwcardiff.org.uk or visit our website.

Based in Cardigan, the group attracts members from neighbouring counties and enjoys a close relationship with the nearby Welsh Wildlife Centre at Cilgerran, as well as enjoying easy access to the natural splendours of Teifi Marshes Nature Reserve.

Indoor meetings, with guest speakers, are held on the evening of the second Wednesday of the month from September to April. They take place at the Studios in Theatre Mwldan (Bath-House Rd, Cardigan, SA43 1JY) at 7.30 pm. Doors open at 7.15pm. Non-members, prospective members, holidaymakers and the simply curious are always welcome to attend! A £3.00 entrance fee covers light refreshments. There is also a programme of wildlife events at Teifi Marshes Nature Reserve throughout the year. For more information email Paul Taylor.

Get involved in events or join the discussion online, we are on social media!

The meetings we hold are mostly out in the Carmarthenshire countryside between March and October and then indoors, usually in Capel Newydd Vestry, Crescent Road, Llandeilo in the winter. From bat walks to talks on our amazing wildlife our local group is active and always eager to welcome both members and non-members alike! 

For more information please email: colin_miles@talktalk.net or call 01269 844679.

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Members of the Friends Skokholm and Skomer group live, not only in South West Wales but, all over the British Isles and beyond. We are drawn together by a love of the islands and a wish to find out more about them. We raise money for the islands and issue newsletters twice a year.

Friends Skokholm and Skomer hold an Annual Reunion in February near Cheltenham where the wardens give reports and visiting speakers lecture on current research. Come along to meet and enthuse with like-minded people - the food’s good too!

For more information email us or visit our website.

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Mid-Pembrokeshire Local Group hold indoor evening meetings between the months of September and April every year and these take place at the Haverfordwest Leisure Centre, St Thomas Green, Haverfordwest, SA61 1QX. The venue has disabled access and parking space.

Speakers at these meetings give talks with a focus on wildlife and conservation.

Outdoor meetings and field trips take place all year round to explore the great array of wildlife in Pembrokeshire. These occur primarily on Wildlife Trust nature reserves yet also at other locations within the wider countryside. Anyone wishing to attend these events is extremely welcome!

Many members of the group also volunteer on the nature reserves around Pembrokeshire. The group has done a fantastic job raising money for Llangloffan Fen nature reserve and other local WT nature reserves which has gone towards conservation projects and improving access.

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For more information visit our Facebook page call David Ramsey, Programme Secretary on 01646 694365 or email davidrframsey@hotmail.com 

This is an active group with a full programme of meetings, generally held on the first Monday of each month between October and May. These are usually held in Theatre C22, Hugh Owen Building at Aberystwyth University, starting at 7.00 pm. However, our monthly meetings have continued via Zoom during the COVID19 restrictions. The talks are free and are well-attended by a mixture of Trust members and students. Non-members are always welcome.

There is also a programme of field meetings held during the summer months. As with the winter talks, these are designed to appeal to a wide range of interests.

The Local Group produces an illustrated newsletter 3 times per year. This provides information about forthcoming meetings and events and short articles about the Trust reserves and other items of local interest.

The newsletter is circulated electronically but printed copies can be provided to those without access to e-mail. To view a copy of our most recent newsletter click the link below or sign up to the Trust's enewsletter  here.

Volunteers from the Group join those from around the county to carry out maintenance work on the Trust’s reserves on Wednesday and Thursday of each week under the supervision of Doug Lloyd, the county Wildlife Trust Officer.

For those who are keen but unable to attend during the working week, there are also Sunday work parties during the winter months at a reserve near Aberystwyth.

If you are visiting any of the Ceredigion reserves please let us know what you see (please include grid reference and date). Vegetation tick lists are available to download. Please return to Doug lloyd D.Lloyd@welshwildlife.org 

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Follow us on Facebook: //North CeredigionWTG

Contact Details for:- North Ceredigion Local Group
Email – Naomi (Chairman) / Fiona  (Vice Chairman)
Telephone: Chairman, Fiona Corke – 01970 822116 for further details.

Pembrokeshire Bird Group is made up of a wide range of birders from those with many years of birding behind them through to others who are just learning the basics. The interests of members range from ringing to survey work, to just enjoying birds. You will be made most welcome whatever your personal level of interest.

For more information please visit their website.

Contact information for the South Pembrokeshire Local Group: 

Secretary: Alan Hare 01646 682970 alanhare22@yahoo.co.uk

The local group e-newsletter please contact: Nathan Walton, Wildlife Trust Reserve Manager: N.walton@welshwildlife.org

The indoor programme includes a wide variety of talks on UK and overseas wildlife and local nature news, followed by refreshments and chat.

During the summer, we have an outdoor events programme at various locations, such as wildlife reserves and farms.

We actively support our two local Nature Reserves – Pembroke Upper Mill Pond, currently undergoing conservation work, and West Williamston, which is a SSSI and the home of the rare Brown Hairstreak butterfly.

We are an active, enthusiastic and friendly group with a full programme of activities throughout the year.

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Our vibrant indoor meetings are held at the Foundry House in Pembroke on the third Tuesday of the month from September to April, starting at 7.30pm.

The Trust has had a local group based in Swansea for over 40 years. In recent times, however, the Group has been revitalised through links with the staff and students of Swansea University.

Indoor meetings are now held throughout the winter months in the Wallace Lecture within the School of Biosciences, and attract both Trust members and University students.

In addition to fostering links with the University, the Group aims to publicise the Trust’s many local reserves, particularly on Gower, and to bring together the membership, volunteers and Trust staff to safeguard the wildlife of our area.

There is an on-going programme of nature walks on local reserves throughout the year. For the more active, there are also volunteer work parties almost daily on the various reserves. In addition, in the summer months the Group Committee organises field trips to other wildlife sites in south Wales and beyond. 

For further details of the Swansea Group, contact the Chair, Hugh Lansdown.

The Wildlife Trusts' Swansea volunteer days are: Tuesday and Thursday. For more information contact: Paul Thornton,  - p.thornton@welshwildlife.org
email: swanseawtgroup@outlook.com

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