About us

The Marsh which is owned by Christchurch Council is a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). It attracts thousands of people a year and therefore requires very careful management, it was with this in mind that Pat Woodward and Peter Holloway decided to start a support group to arrange adequate funding to help to manage the Marsh. A meeting took place in a local pub which rallied twenty supporters and The Friends of Stanpit Marsh was born. This was in 1983 and now today our membership stands at well over four hundred.

Over these years we have raised a substantial amount of money with many regular events such as garden parties, bring and buy stalls, car boot sales, evening socials, coffee mornings, walks and quizes. This money has enabled us to help towards funding a Summer Warden (see duties of the Warden below) which we always consider a priority, an informative display in the Information Centre and work that is needed to maintain a healthy Marsh. But all these years there had been one firm objective, to have a really good Information Centre to replace the much used and rather tired caravan that we were using. This objective has finally been achieved and we watched it being built with great delight. It had been a long time coming but Christchurch Council finally agreed to finance the project and together with a very substantial donation from the Friends, work commenced.

We will now have a centre that will inform and educate the large amount of visitors about the variety of wildlife that can be found on the Marsh, and we sincerely hope that they will respect and cherish their visits

We are very keen to encourage new members to our friendly association, please see the membership details with an application form. All members receive three newsletters a year.

The Friends are a very strong support group with a committee that holds regular meetings which involves a great amount of discussion about the welfare of the Marsh. All of us have a great love of this area and take a very keen interest in its wellbeing. Our aim is to continue with our fund raising, as money will always be needed to help maintain the Marsh and the new Information Centre.

The date of the grand opening of the new Information Centre and our twenty-fifth anniversary celebrations was 20 September 2008

 

Summer Warden’s Duties
 
Patrols the site every day, checking fences and livestock – there are about 20 New Forest ponies that graze the Marsh all year round.
Studies bird records from the local bird group (CHOG), and updates daily sightings board.
Advises Marsh users of the sensitivity of certain areas and monitors dog control.
Carries out necessary conservation work such as trimming vegetation, maintaining fences and litter-picking.
Looks after the interior of the Information Centre.
Conducts surveys of rare plants – Althaea officinalis (Marsh Mallow), Hippuris vulgaris (Marestail) and Eleocharis parvula (Dwarf Spike-rush) – and Butterflies.
Raises Natterjack tadpoles in a nursery pond.
Takes children’s groups on tours of the Marsh (CRB checked) and gives talks to school groups in the visitor centre.
Organises or assists with various events for adults such as photography workshops, history walks and bird-watching walks.
Liaises with local groups interested in the Marsh, such as FOSM.
Produces two reports at the end of the summer – one about the Natterjack toads, which is sent to Amphibian & Reptile Conservation in Bournemouth, and one about Stanpit Marsh for the Countryside Service, which is available to FOSM.

 

FOSM Projects

1. Information Centre OPEN Sign
Members of the Committee are working with Peter Holloway, the Senior Countryside Warden, to produce an OPEN Sign for the Information Centre. FOSM is contributing to the cost of the sign.

2. Water Vole Survey
FOSM contributed £50 towards a Water Vole Survey which was carried out at Tutton’s Well in October 2009. A conservation consultant and surveyor for Natural England did the survey for water voles (Arvicola terristris) and other small mammals along Stanpit Creek, and concluded that neither water voles nor otters used that area.

3. FOSM Newsletter Archive
We now have an up-to-date archive of copies of all FOSM Newsletters Numbered 1 to 86 in the Local History Society’s room on the first floor of Christchurch Library. The archive dates from FOSM’s inception in 1983 to January 2010, and there is an Index listing the articles in each Newsletter. The archive is available to everyone and makes interesting reading. Please contact Christchurch Library for the History room’s opening times.

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About Membership of FOSM

About FOSM events and activities

About the Marsh month by month

Picture Gallery of FOSM events

About our major fun-raising event the FOSM Garden Party

About the New Stanpit Marsh Information Centre

History of Stanpit Marsh and its Habitats

About rare plants on the Marsh

About saltpans on the Marsh

Contact the FOSM Committee