Minutes of Annual General Meeting of
Friends of Linford Lakes Nature Reserve
Tuesday 20 May 2025
Start time: 7.00 pm at the Pavilion, Campbell Park
Attendance: 17 people
Apologies: Peter Loose, Linda Morris, Roy Platten
Welcome from Tony Bedford, Chair of FoLLNR
Tony welcomed everyone to this the 13th AGM since the Friends group’s formation in 2011.
For the benefit of newer members the Chair recounted how at the beginning the reserve was owned and created by the Hanson Trust after gravel extraction had finished and was named the Hanson Environmental Study Centre. Consequently, the Friends group had started as the Friends of Hanson Environmental Study Centre, which is why our internet name is still Friends of HESC. The Hanson Trust for many years leased the site to MK Council, but as money became tight and the Council were unable to fund the care of the site the Friends of HESC were pretty much the only ones maintaining the reserve.
The Parks Trust took over the ownership of the site in 2016 and it became Linford Lakes Nature Reserve; it was then that we changed our name to FoLLNR.
Election of officers
The Friends of Linford Lakes Nature Reserve is a properly constituted not for profit organisation. Our constitution requires that the three main officers of the Group, i.e. Chair, Treasurer and Secretary, must be elected/re-elected at an Annual General Meeting each year by vote of the membership.
The following officers were elected.
Chair Tony Bedford. Proposer: Simon Bunker; Seconded: Peter Maric
Treasurer Pauline Studman. Proposer: Jane Grisdale; Seconded: Keith Gander
Secretary Janice Robertson. Proposer: Jenny Brown; Seconded: Charles Westwood
All officers were elected unanimously by a show of hands.
Chair’s Report
Welcome to this AGM in what is now FoLLNR’s fourteenth year of existence.
Sadly the Linford Lakes Centre building has remained closed for 3 years now and we have been advised it is now due to be knocked down and replaced by a modular build – more on this later.
Without a centre, toilets and catering facilities it has again been difficult to organise the various walks, talks and discovering wildlife events that used to be a feature of the Friends calendar - although Andy Harding kindly hosted a Warbler Walk for us earlier this month.
Again because of lack of facilities monthly task days have been reduced although we did manage a few sessions to repaint the Warbler Hide bridge and Gordon’s Bench, build a new screen on the approach to the Otter Hide, carry out general tidying around the reserve and supplying bird food and replacing feeders at the Warbler Hide. Our aim remains to try and resume a more regular programme of work in co-ordination with the PT over the coming year and to this end we are trying to recruit more members to help with these tasks.
In February we also held our annual fish and chip supper and quiz night at Campbell Park, which was very well attended.
We have renewed our insurance policy to ensure we have public liability and accident insurance to cover events run by FoLLNR and to protect any money being handled.
We have continued to update our website as far as possible and have continued to maintain a species list throughout each year. We have also gathered information from the Flickr website, ringing records and members’ observations to ensure a comprehensive list of records for LLNR is sent to BMERC each year, in order that official records continue to reflect LLNR’s status as one of the most valuable sites for wildlife in the county.
FoLLNR representatives have continued to meet with Parks Trust representatives quarterly to discuss, work plans and exchange ideas for the site. These meetings have been successful in achieving refurbishment of the carpark surface and improving access into the reserve where the path used to flood. We have also urged the PT to do as much as is possible to deter trespassers and vandalism on site.
Kenny Cramer has continued to run his ringing programme at LLNR and I would like to take this opportunity to thank him for all his efforts and support and for the wealth of information his records provide and once again demonstrate the unique value of LLNR as a wildlife haven.
Thanks to Carla Boswell from the PT for kindly helping us with the use of the meeting room facilities at Campbell Park.
I would like to thank also the help and support provided by my fellow committee members: Neil, Keith, Dave, Roy, Peter and Ian, and I am pleased we have welcomed new committee members Ian Facer and Helen Castley.
Lastly I must give special thanks to our Treasurer Pauline for keeping a tight rein on our funds and to Janice our secretary, who does a fantastic job of co-ordinating and communicating with the membership and the Parks Trust.
The Parks Trust Report
The Parks Trust have kindly provided us with the following update from Lewis Dickinson, Senior Biodiversity Officer (who replaced Martin Kincaid), which the Chair presented at the meeting:
LLNR Building
We have appointed a new project manager, Huntley-Cartwright, to oversee the new building at Linford Lakes Nature Reserve. We had a positive experience of working with them previously on the Great Linford Manor Park project and they are already making good progress. We will soon be appointing an architect who will conceptualise the new building to meet our specification. When we have some visuals and plans we will share them with FoLLNR. A full programme of works will be created once we have conceptualised the new building. We hope to have the works complete by Spring 2026, subject to planning consent.
LLNR Infrastructure & Maintenance
This winter into spring we have completed two projects that improve access and parking on the site. The first was the creation of a new section of boardwalk from the overflow car park into the reserve, installed in January, to provide access over a noted point of regular flooding. The second was the resurfacing of the overflow car park, which will improve site use during the closure of the main car park from ongoing construction works. Our maintenance programme of strimming and mowing the paths has commenced to keep access around the site.
We note there has been, in recent months, a recent uptick in anti-social behaviour on site. There have been fence breaches that we moved quickly to address. We are hopeful that the formal closure of "Swans Way" that crosses through Stanton Low will reduce the number of incidents that occur but will continue to monitor the situation and log events to determine any patterns of behaviour. We appreciate reports received from FoLLNR members, so please continue to report any anti-social behaviour incidents and issues to the site wardens or community ranger email address communityranger@theparkstrust.com.
LLNR Habitat Management
LLNR has a wide range of habitats of varying maturity and condition. The Trust recognises and wants to invest into the site; however we need supportive funds to do so. We have explored options from Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier to Biodiversity Net Gain to draw the investment required to manage the habitat for the long term. Undertaking some baseline surveys in 2024, Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) offered the best opportunity to draw funds for LLNR to improve and uplift the habitats. In order to engage with BNG, we must follow a process of which there are key defined statutory requirements, one of which is the creation of a "habitat management and monitoring plan" (HMMP).
While there has been discussion of a LLNR management plan over the past few months, this document will sit alongside the HMMP. The LLNR Management plan will be the user friendly working document, while the HMMP is the legally secured document for the BNG. While the LLNR management plan is close to being completed, we will need to ensure it is aligned with the HMMP. We are currently engaging an ecologist to create the HMMP. Once the management plan is completed and ready for communication we will present it to the group and site users.
Treasurer’s Report
Pauline Studman said we have not spent much in the last year nor had many opportunities to increase our balance. We were however able to add a contribution to funds of £50 from the Fish and Chip/Quiz night.
The current balance totals £5780.18. The accounts have been independently audited by a qualified accountant.
Our bank has started charging for running the account including a standing charge and an amount for paying any money in or out. We investigated other banks but found it seems to be universal. We have decided to keep a petty cash account for spending on regular items such as bird food.
Plans for new building
Tony said that the initial ideas for the new modular building had been shared with us and we feel that it should be suitable for our functions again including our open days which gave opportunities to showcase the reserve and create interest in local wildlife, and a place to meet up with like-minded nature enthusiasts. Our activities helped to encourage people to buy permits; and money from refreshments was used to buy tools, bird food, and fund projects, etc.
Simon Bunker asked if there were plans for an outside toilet. Tony said it is under discussion. The problem is that it would be exposed to vandalism as there is not going to be a flat with residents to oversee the area out of hours, so it would be vulnerable. One with a secure door and combination lock is possible. We have already asked for the PT to consider one, and we will follow it up. The PT do listen and try to cooperate.
Ian Bailey asked about the timing for demolition. Tony expected that the submitted plan would be for both demolition and build. They will be using the original slab and footings. We had asked the PT whether the building had any heritage value, particularly as it had been opened by the Duke of Edinburgh. It also had a seeded roof, pioneering at that time in the 1980s. We were told that MK Planning had been consulted and there was no reason for it not to be demolished.
Peter Maric asked about renovating the building instead of demolishing. Tony said the roof had been leaking and after 3 years of abandonment the cost would be prohibitive.
Jane Grisdale asked whether the wildlife had moved out of the building. Tony said that was unknown but he knew that badgers had moved into the car park area.
Ian Bailey asked whether the new buildings will be vandal proof. Tony said there would be improved lighting and security. There may even be opportunities for events to view badgers in the evening.
Other questions from the floor
Ian Bailey asked if there was any news on applications for development nearby. Tony said that he had been invited to present at the Planning Inspector’s inquiry where it was found against development on the current site. There is now a dog daycare facility and café run by Anthony and Jenna. They have invested in the fishing facility with more swims and a bailiff. It is believed to be on a long lease so no new development plans are likely. Templeview Developments spent 3 years and a great deal of money in an attempt to get planning permission. After three refusals they appear to have given up, but with a new change of government priorities nothing is definite in the longer future.
Kati Gastrow said she had read all the documents before the planning inquiry in order to send her response. She asked about the PT’s position. Tony said the PT’s position had always been not in favour of development but if it happened they would be prepared to work with the developer, if funded (possibly up to £1.3 million), to create and manage a country park adjacent to the nature reserve. The Friends’ view would be that the proximity of such a development would have a detrimental effect on the reserve and be too high a price to pay.
Kati also asked about the prospect of flooding. Tony said that there has not so far been flooding as high as the centre building. As it is not a residential building, planning permission to cover flooding is not needed.
Helen Castley asked about funding for the PT’s management plan. What are the stages of the plan and when do we expect to hear? Tony said we will ask at the next quarterly meeting with Lewis Dickinson.
We were told that BBOWT might take an office in the new building. We will ask if the PT have any more information on what they plan to do here.
Helen Maric asked about timing of the build. Tony said modular buildings take very little time to construct on site, perhaps as quickly as two months, but getting planning permission and removing the old building would probably take much longer.
Jane Grisdale asked about current membership. Tony said the Friends have about 200 addresses but because of data protection the PT are unable to give us details of their permit holders. It is believed membership has fallen because of the lack of facilities for volunteer days, which are now mostly attended only by committee members. There used to be about 20 people for work parties and 100 people at open days. The Green Gym occasionally still bring their volunteers there. We would definitely like to encourage younger people to join us.
Jane suggested focusing on the open date for the new building and do a big advertising campaign and open event at the centre. This idea was appreciated and will be considered. Kati suggested arranging a day when it would be possible to see the plans at perhaps the Pavilion, which might raise interest.
Jane asked if the Committee needed ideas for improving the site. Simon said there were no flowers for pollinators, so reseeding for meadows could be suggested. Ian Bailey said he had been attending various biodiversity projects at the Open University on behalf of the Friends, and will be following these up in the future. Tony said improving hides and stopping vandalism is important. The PT had stepped up security with enforcement officers in the summer. We had offered to share the cost of a steel door on the hides. We need to keep on top of reducing vegetation to improve vistas from the hides. If funding allowed, we would like to build another hide on the opposite side of the lake.
Tony thanked everyone for their suggestions and said we will be following these up with the PT at the next quarterly meeting when he and Janice meet Lewis Dickinson to discuss recent events and plans for the reserve.
Close of meeting
The meeting concluded at 8.15 pm. Tony thanked all for taking the time to attend. The Friends’ committee appreciate all those who participate and help to make things work.
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