Father opens nature reserve in memory of son

A father has officially opened the first phase of a 50-acre nature reserve in Leicestershire in memory of his son.

Mick Adler, 81, donated land he owned in Great Bowden to Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust to run.

Mick said he wanted to create a legacy for his son James, who "loved the outdoors" but died at 42 from Ehlers-Danlos syndromes, a rare group of conditions affecting connective tissues, which also caused the death of James's older brother, Tom.

In the past year, people living in the area helped plant 22,000 trees on the land, named the James Adler Nature Reserve.

James was chief executive of Ashdown Forest in East Sussex when he died.

Mick added: "He would have loved to have been responsible for the land at Great Bowden and it is most appropriate that the new reserve is named after him."

He added: "Had James lived, he was going to be the owner of the land, I did not want it to be in the hands of a developer, it meant that much to me."

Mick thanked the local volunteers who helped plant the 22,000 trees, and added: "Every child should have access to proper wildlife.

"Emotionally, I was extremely attached to the land. For much of my early childhood I had lived with my grandparents in Great Bowden and had free run over acres of land.

"In summer, I loved getting up early and going to pick mushrooms and enjoy the quietness of my surroundings, punctuated only by the dawn chorus of many birds."

Phase two of the project is planned to open in winter 2026 when a bridge is built across the River Welland, connecting two areas.

John Bristow, programme lead for the Rewilding Harborough Project at Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust, said: "We are working with a number of partners including the council, Anglian Water and local charities on this 50-acre site which is part of a much broader 500-acre landscape nature recovery project."

Mat Carter, CEO of Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust, said: "We received the land last year and have been working on it but to open it today, it's just absolutely brilliant."

He added: "This is exactly the sort of collaborative approach to conservation we're looking to foster around our reserves, with people forging new connections with the nature on their doorstep."

James Carpenter, from Great Bowden, was part of the volunteer team planting trees during the winter.

He said: "We haven't got that many trees around here so adding to the local wildlife is brilliant.

"It was great the Adler family donated this land for our use. I'd like to come down here in 100 years and see what it looks like when they've grown."

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