Gloucestershire Wildfowlers Association News
March 2020 Newsletter
Gloucestershire Wildfowling and Conservation Association Newsletter - March 2020
Bag Returns
Now that the season has finished could everyone please remember to fill in their bag returns and send them to George as soon as possible.
It is a mandatory requirement of our membership of the GWCA that we all complete bag returns, even if we didn't shoot at all during the season so please fill in yours.
Contact details for completed returns is as follows
*************
Or by post to
George Downing
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Poulton Court Cleaning Fairies
Contrary to the beliefs seemingly held by some members of this club I would like to assure everyone that there are no cleaning Fairies at Poulton Court.
Several times during the course of last season the club hut has been left in a disgraceful state by people who have had an overnight stay there.
It really isn't asking much to expect everyone who books the hut for an overnight stay to ensure that it is left clean and tidy when you pack up to leave the following day.
Recently the club hosted an event attended by senior members of Natural England as an awareness exercise to enable them to gain a greater understanding of all the good work we do in terms of conservation and general management of the foreshore and surroundings.
Prior to this visit 2 members of the club had to go to the hut which had been left in an appalling state, and clean up after inconsiderate individuals. They had even left bagged dog mess behind !!!
This really is unacceptable and had they not cleaned up the mess I'm sure you can all imagine what image this would have given Natural England of us as wildfowlers at a time when we are actively trying to encourage their support of our activities.
Many clubs along the Severn Estuary would love to have an asset like our club hut for their members to stay between flights, it really should be something we are proud of so please treat it with respect and don't leave it looking like a landfill site.
Natural England Visit
As mentioned above the GWCA recently hosted a wildfowling awareness day for key representatives of Natural England to enable them to gain a greater understanding of the activities that we undertake both as wildfowlers and conservationists.
Building strong links with organisations like Natural England has to be to everyone's benefit, not just for us as members of the GWCA but for wildfowling in general and with a greater understanding of everything we do organisations like Natural England will hopefully be warmer to our approaches when it comes to negotiations for foreshore consents etc, so well done to everyone from the GWCA who worked hard to make the day such a success
West of England Game Fair
Just a quick reminder that the GWCA will once again be attending the West of England Game fair this year on March 21-22nd
If anyone is in a position to help out in manning the clubs stand for part of either day could you please let Ian Whitehall know, your assistance is greatly appreciated
Duck Nesting Tubes
The Duck nesting tubes at both Wainlodes and Poulton Court are now in need of urgent maintenance prior to their hopefully successful use during the nesting season. These tubes have worked well in the past, providing safe nesting sites away from predators. If you can help and are interested in attending a working party then please contact Matt Phillips and let him know your availability
Eley Hawk Factory Tour
Would anyone be interested in a factory tour of Eley Hawk Ltd to see how cartridges are manufactured, assembled and tested ? If there's sufficient interest I will organise a factory tour which should take about an hour to an hour and a half and hopefully give everyone an insight into how our cartridges end up in a box on the shelves of the gun shop. With recent developments in wad technology etc I'm sure that more than a few of you will have questions to ask.
If you're interested please let me know, tours are weekdays only and I would suggest a day in June which should be something of interest during the close season.
Contact me at ***************************************************
Contact the Club Secretary for any contact details mentioned above.... removed as this page is visible by the public.