Ilkley Civic Society have erected a Blue Plaque commemorating Wells House at the upper corner of Darwin Gardens, beside the entrance to the former hydro which is now a residential development. The plaque is mounted on a boulder surrounded by flowers, ferns and shrubs planted by our volunteers.
The official unveiling took place on Midsummer Day (June 24th) coinciding with the 5th Anniversary of the Millennium Greens official opening. Councillor Anne Hawkesworth performed the ceremony, which was attended by Civic Society members, Darwin Gardens supporters and representatives of Magellan Land, the developers of the Wells House site.
With its wide variety of mature habitats, the site is now showing a great abundance of wildlife. In addition to our dazzling daffodil display, this year has seen a spectacular burgeoning of primroses and foxgloves, and promising increases of red campion, honeysuckle, and waterside plants such as meadowsweet and ragged robin. The ornamental crab-apple trees have also given a fine show of blossom and fruit. The living willow arbour has been strengthened, and the pond has a flourishing population of frogs, newts, dragonflies and damselflies.
We celebrated these successes by waymarking a Nature Trail around the site, with accompanying leaflets available at the main information signboard. Ilkley Gazette Editor Mel Vasey officially opened the Trail on August 1st as one of the events marking Yorkshire Day.
As part of Ilkley Summer Festival we hosted another Doggy FunDay, when 'Best Friends' dog training team mounted a display beside the picnic area, followed by amusing challenges and competitions open to all dogs and their owners. Despite wet weather conditions, there was a good turnout of participants and spectators, and the event provided a lot of fun for all.
Having achieved Green Pennant status for a second year, we are displaying our annual award notices on new mini-signboards at the entrances to the Green from Wells Road and College Drive, as well as flying our pennant from the flagpole. Thanks to an award from Ilkley Parish Council, flagstone surfacing has been laid around the main information signboard and maze dedication sign, improving access to these popular features whilst preventing excessive wear on the surrounding areas. The new surfacing was officially opened on August 18th by Parish Council Leader Mike Gibbons.
The waterside walkways laid out last year along the side of the ghyll have been improved by inserting two further flights of steps, surfaced with aggregate, to give an easier passage on the steepest sections of the pathways.