Friends of the Loxley Valley have received a community project grant cheque from Bradfield Parish Council. The £4,478 grant will help us to tell the story of the valley’s water power heritage.
29
Nov
2024
20
Oct
2024
How we hope to tell the Loxley valley water power story
Friends of the Loxley Valley hope to win funding from Bradfield Parish Council to help tell the story of the valley’s fascinating water power heritage.
We plan to put up interpretation boards and finger posts in the valley to increase awareness of the historic water wheel sites that thread all the way along it.
The signs will also showcase the beautiful landscape along the valley. And they will tell how nature has threaded through the old water power remains to create outstanding habitat for wildlife.
They will also feature “QR codes” linking to multimedia online materials that will tell the story in greater detail.
We’ve asked for £4,500 for the project from “participatory budget” funds that Bradfield Parish Council has set aside for community initiatives.
The winning bids will be decided by a vote of parishioners who attend an open public meeting. This is at Worrall Memorial Hall on Thursday 24th October.
All the organisations who’ve made funding bids will make presentations at the meeting. And people who go along will have chance to ask questions before they cast their votes.
The meeting runs from 6pm to 8.30pm.
We’re urging Friends of the Loxley members and supporters to go along and support us on the night!
Thank you so much if you’re able to make it.
What’s special about water power in the Loxley valley?
The old water wheel sites in fast-flowing rivers like the Loxley and Rivelin played a vital role in Sheffield’s industrial history.
Weirs across the rivers harnessed the water for numerous grinding shops and forges. They were packed all the way along the valleys.
Many of the water power sites in the Loxley were rebuilt after the tragic Sheffield Flood of 1864, using updated engineering techniques. They now complement the earlier, smaller water wheel sites in the Rivelin.
Taken together, the two valleys contain a set of water power remains of international historical significance. Several of the Loxley valley sites contain listed buildings. The Little Matlock water power system is also a Scheduled Ancient Monument.
All the water power sites in both valleys also feature on the South Yorkshire Local Heritage List, following our successful bid last year.
Why do we need signage in the Loxley valley?
Sadly the Loxley lags some way behind the Rivelin. There’s no signage on the ground to tell the valley’s story.
The Rivelin Valley Conservation Group have worked hard to put up interpretation boards and finger posts explaining the rich industrial heritage.
We think this literally signposts why the Rivelin valley is special. And we think it helps to express local pride and sense of place.
We’d like to learn from their success and do something similar.
Joined up Heritage Sheffield are backing our funding bid. They’ve sent us a letter of support.
They say readily accessible information is important to help people to understand and celebrate Sheffield’s heritage.
Now we need your support too! Please vote for us on Thursday evening if you can.
- A reminder: the participatory budget meeting is at Worrall Memorial Hall on Towngate Road, from 6pm to 8.30pm on Thursday, 24th October. You must live in the Bradfield Parish Council area if you wish to go along and vote.
We’ve drawn inspiration from signs and finger posts along the neighbouring Rivelin valley.
05
Jul
2024
Friends of the Loxley Valley aim to beat Himalayan Balsam
Friends of the Loxley Valley are appealing for help to beat back the rapidly spreading Himalayan Balsam that is threatening to dominate parts of the local riverside landscape.
We’re asking you to let us know if you spot the invasive plant taking a toehold in the valley, so that we can organise “balsam bashing” sessions to stop it getting out of control.
We hope to remove as much of the balsam as we can, before it becomes dominant and stifles native plants along the Loxley valley. But we need your help to do it!
What is Himalayan Balsam?
Himalayan Balsam, or Indian Balsam, is a non-native plant that was introduced to the UK about 200 years ago.
It’s also sometimes known as “jumping jack”. This is because of its explosive seed pods that can fire seeds up to seven metres from the parent plant, which can be between 6ft and 10ft tall. And each plant can produce up to 800 seeds!
Its tall canopy blocks out light, stifling smaller native plants.
Bees and other pollinators are attracted to balsam blossom in preference to other flowers. This reduces plant diversity and ultimately affects the food chain for local wildlife.
Balsam also alters soil conditions. It’s shallow rooted, and once it dies back there’s less root matter to bind the soil. This increases the risk of erosion and the silting of watercourses.
And it blocks access to paths and waterways, costing time and money to clear it from affected areas.
Small wonder that it’s an offence under the Wildlife and Countryside Act to plant or cause balsam to grow in the wild.
How can we tackle Himalayan Balsam in the Loxley valley?
Himalayan Balsam growing in the Acorn Hill woods near Low Matlock.
Balsam is now prevalent along the River Don. It’s spreading rapidly as the climate gets warmer and wetter. And it’s gaining a hold in tributaries such as the Loxley and Rivelin. It spreads downstream.
We need your help to identify places where Himalayan Balsam is growing in the Loxley valley.
Once we know where it is, we hope to undertake “balsam bashing” sessions in August and early September before it sets seed. We may also do a few trial runs later this month.
We hope to work with Riverlution who can provide equipment, expertise and skills to tackle more inaccessible areas.
In the short term – before the end of July – if you spot any please note the location and let Nick Blaney, who is a FoLV member and is coordinating the survey, know on nick.blaney@gmail.com.
Ideally we need either an Ordnance Survey grid reference or a what3words location. If you have a smartphone, OSLocate is a great piece of free software and of course there is the what3words app. If you can, please also take a picture.
How can I identify Himalayan Balsam in the Loxley valley?
You can identify it very easily in the flowering season from its bright pink or purple flowers.
But it’s also very distinctive during the growing season with its large serrated leaves that grow at right angles to the leaves above and below them.
It can grow between 6ft and 10ft tall. See pictures of both states at the bottom of this post. There is also a great video to help identification on youtube.
If you feel it is safe to do so and you are confident in your identification, you can remove balsam yourself. Pull from the base to get the shallow roots out of the ground, snap the stalk to weaken it, and leave the plants in a dry space, well above the waterline and potential high water level. Please do not leave on the footpath itself though.
Please still take photos before and after, and let us know the location via the email address above.
Thanks very much for your help in this!
- For up to date details of our balsam clearance work, please see the separate Balsam Bashing page that we’ve set up on this website. We’ll use the page to publicise details of the clearance sessions, and to report on progress as the work gets underway. You’ll find the page here: https://friendsoftheloxleyvalley.com/balsam-bashing-in-the-loxley-valley/
Himalayan Balsam in flower
06
Mar
2024
Sheffield-based housing company unveils new plans for 60 homes on the old Hepworth factory site
A Sheffield housing company is developing new plans for around 60 homes on the old Hepworth factory site. They’ve set up a website to explain their thinking, and they hope to submit a planning application later this year,
25
Sep
2023
Loxley valley water power sites added to South Yorkshire Local Heritage List
Great news for the Loxley valley – our historic water power sites along the valley have received official recognition on the South Yorkshire Local Heritage List.
Inclusion on the List reflects the local historic significance of the water power sites in the valley bottom, where numerous dams and water wheels powered industry for hundreds of years.
The listing provides details of twelve separate water power sites along the River Loxley and Storrs Brook, between Stacey Bank and Malin Bridge.
Together they made up an integrated water power system stretching the entire length of the valley.
Remains of most of them still exist in the form of weirs, dams, goits (water channels running adjacent to the river), mill buildings and some of the historic wheels and wheel pits.
Some of these sites are already recognised nationally as “Grade Two listed buildings”, reflecting their wider significance in the emergence of water power.
There are nationally listed water power buildings at Olive Mill, Low Matlock (which is also a Scheduled Ancient Monument), and Malin Bridge Corn Mill.
The South Yorkshire Local Heritage List identifies heritage features that do not enjoy national protection, but still contribute to the distinctiveness and history of the local area.
Adding the whole valley to the South Yorkshire List means local historic significance should be taken into account in any planning decisions that affect the water power remains, although it won’t provide the same level of protection as national designation.
How can I see details of the new South Yorkshire listing?
The South Yorkshire Local Heritage List has a dedicated website run by the South Yorkshire Archaeology Service.
All the heritage features that have been placed on the Local Heritage List can be viewed there.
This link will take you directly to listing for the Loxley valley water power assets, where you can read the full submission and see the photographs that accompany it: https://local-heritage-list.org.uk/south-yorkshire/asset/10391
How did the Loxley valley water power listing come about?
The listing submission was prepared by a heritage working group including members of Friends of the Loxley Valley, Friends of the Loxley Cemetery and the Bradfield Historical Society.
We began work last year, basing our research on local knowledge and observation, and also drawing extensively on the “Water Power on the Sheffield Rivers” book that was published by the South Yorkshire Industrial History Society.
Our submission was approved and officially placed on the list this month (September 2023).
It joins similar listings for the Rivelin valley that were submitted by the Rivelin Valley Conservation Group.
Together, the two valleys played a huge role in Sheffield’s emergence as a major industrial city.
We hope that these local heritage listings will help us to achieve further recognition and protection for our unique and fascinating local water power heritage.
The Olive Wheel weir near Rowell Bridge in the Loxley valley
01
Jul
2023
Friends of the Loxley Valley start work to rediscover old stone slab footpath
Volunteers from Friends of the Loxley Valley have started work to “rediscover” historic stone slabs on the public footpath running up Loxley Bank from Rowell Bridge to Stannington.
We’ve cut back brambles and scraped off soil that had accumulated over many years. This had produced a thick layer of turf that was obliterating most of the original stone surface.
Underneath the turf, we were stunned to find the first stretch of the old slabs is still beautifully laid. The slabs are in excellent condition despite years of abandonment and neglect.
We’re not sure whether anybody knows the detailed history of the stones and when they were laid.
Potentially they date back hundreds of years. That’s when local mill owners needed a firm and dry surface to get workers and materials to and from the old water wheels in the valley bottom.
The footpath runs all the way up Loxley Bank, starting at the old packhorse bridge over the river and running through the fields to the Acorn Hill estate.
Bits of the old stone surface can be seen pretty much all the way up where the grass and scrub has not yet grown over it.
First steps to assess the task
Four volunteers from FoLV spent a couple of hours this week at the bottom end of the path to get an idea of how much work would be involved in clearing it.
We started at the top of the steps just above the packhorse bridge, and cleared a thick layer of bramble and scrub that had pushed out over the line of the path.
We then carefully used spades to scrape off the layer of roots and turf that was covering the stones.
Then we brushed and gently scraped the slabs underneath to reveal a 10 yard section of the original path in all its glory.
It’s a seriously impressive part of the Loxley valley heritage: a beautifully crafted four feet wide jigsaw of local stone, laid flat and with immaculately straight edges. Some real Sheffield craftwork went into creating this!
Should we take the project further?
Clearing these stones dovetails with the footpath stewardship work that we’ve agreed with the city council’s public rights of way officer.
Our work focuses mainly on the valley bottom path between Rowell Bridge and Olive Mill, but we’re gradually taking on other tasks when we have the volunteer numbers and the time.
We’d be very interested in the views of FoLV members and other local people on whether clearing the old stone path would be a footpath heritage project worth taking further.
If we’re to press on, we may need to set aside more time, and we may need more volunteers.
But just look at the photos below to see the section of path that we rediscovered in just a few hours this week. This is local heritage and local folk history! Wouldn’t it be a shame if it was to become lost and forgotten forever?
- Please click here if you would like to learn more about the Friends of the Loxley Valley programme of footpath stewardship work
- Friends of the Loxley Valley would like to thank Bradfield Parish Council for their generous £200 community grant towards our environmental work. This has helped to pay for our hi-vis vests, our work signs, and our public liability insurance.
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- Getting to grips with the forest of brambles that had grown over the old stone slabs
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- Scraping soil off the old stone slabs and brushing them clean
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- Job done! Volunteers Pete Hammond, Joanne Lee and Stewart Kemp give the thumbs up after clearing the first stretch of the old stone slabs
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- Historic Sheffield craftwork: a look back along the first stretch of stone slab footpath to be cleared by Friends of the Loxley Valley volunteers
19
Jan
2023
Loxley valley Green Belt to be safeguarded under new Sheffield Local Plan
Friends of the Loxley valley welcome the continued protection of Green Belt countryside in Sheffield’s draft Local Plan.
16
Jun
2022
Friends of the Loxley Valley members hold second footpath trimming session
Friends of the Valley members have this week held a second footpath trimming session to help keep the main valley bottom footpath clear of overgrowing vegetation.
We pruned and trimmed the ‘tapping rail’ between Olive Mill and Rowell Bridge and lightly pruned a bit of tree growth that was dropping below head height.
We also cleared a few bits of dog muck that were on the path near Rowell Bridge, (come on folks, there’s a pooh bin there!).
It was the second time we’ve worked on this stretch of path, following our first session last month, (see earlier news post here).
We finished work on the path a bit earlier than we expected, so we then nipped across the river to clear some badly overgrown duckboards on the parallel footpath.
FoLV would like to thank all the members who’ve volunteered to take part in the work sessions. Our voluntary work helps the council’s hard-pressed public rights of way team to concentrate on urgent repairs from a very limited budget.
Work sessions are open to all Friends of the Loxley Valley members. Membership is open to all. See the ‘Get Involved’ page on this website for more information.
This duckboard bridge is on the footpath on the south side of the river. It was disappearing under shrubbery and grass, so we tidied it up.
Friends of the Loxley Valley members working to clear the overgrown duckboards
Job done! We’ve cleared the duckboards of overgrowth. Walkers can see the way ahead and get across without stumbling or tripping.
29
May
2022
Friends of the Loxley Valley taskforce trims valley bottom footpath
A Friends of the Loxley Valley taskforce of community volunteers has trimmed and tidied the valley bottom footpath between Rowell Bridge and Olive Mill.
17
May
2022
Friends of the Loxley Valley receive £200 community grant from Bradfield Parish Council
Friends of the Loxley Valley are delighted to have received a £200 grant from Bradfield Parish Council to help us to do environmental work around the valley.
The community grant award will pay for public liability insurance and a set of high vis safety vests.
It will make it possible for FoLV members to start projects such as footpath maintenance work and litter picks.
Initially, we hope to start work along the stretch of “Easy Access” footpath between Rowell Lane and Olive Mill.
We hope to help keep it clean and tidy, and to help keep the “tapping rail” alongside the path clear of vegetation.
We will also do similar work along a short stretch of footpath further down the valley, between Loxley Road and Low Matlock Lane.
Bradfield Parish Council Chair Councillor Stephen Bennett presented the £200 cheque to FoLV treasurer Andrew Holmes and secretary Stewart Kemp before a recent parish council meeting.
“Friends of the Loxley Valley would like to thank Councillor Bennett and his fellow parish councillors for this generous community grant,” said Stewart Kemp.
“The money will help our members to work safely and visibly as we begin to do practical work around the valley.
“We’re all aware of the financial pressures facing local councils as they try to keep on top of countryside management and footpath maintenance work.
“We hope that FoLV members working as community volunteers will help to keep the Loxley valley looking at its best.”