Following five years as Chair, Geoff Lambert stepped down at our AGM and will continue to serve on the executive committee. Our new Chair, Gerry Sansom, thanked Geoff and presented him with a beautiful photograph of Warden Hills close to where Geoff lives, taken by our branch photographer Barry Halton.

We’re pleased to welcome Gerry Sansom as our new Chair and Michael Stonnell as our new Vice-Chair. The other members of our executive board remain the same: Alan Apling (Hon Treasurer), Suzanne Yates (Branch Secretary), Steve Halton, Tony Kellett and Alex Munro.

Our AGM was followed by an entertaining and informative talk by author and ecologist Hugh Warwick. He said:

"Hedgehogs face many threats. Like most other wildlife the loss of habitat and food are key problems. But the hedgehog has one particular problem that needs addressing urgently.

You see, many people measure the biodiversity value of an area by counting birds, bees and bats … which is all fine and good, but misses out on the fraction of wildlife not blessed with wings. And when you start to look at those that creep and snuffle, you quickly see how bad things are..."

He shared his experiences about what we can all do to promote wildlife in our patch, including the Hedgehog Street project, that calls for us to be Hedgehog champions and work with neighbours to create a hedgehog friendly habitat that they can move through.

If you were unable to attend the AGM but want to hear more, Hugh is returning to Bedfordshire to speak at the AGM of Friends of Studham Common, at Studham Village Hall, Friday 13th June, 7.30pm.