President's Charity

Since 2004 it has been the custom for DASLS President to nominate a charity for their year of office. Charities have included Children’s Hospice South West, Friends of Rowancroft Hospice, Farms for City Children, MacMillan, North Devon Hospice, Devon and Somerset Community Foundations, The C Group, Devon Air Ambulance, Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance, Wooden Spoon, Headway Devon & Somerset, Step One and In Charley's Memory.

Money has been raised through a combination of sponsored events, raffles, quiz nights and at other social events. So far we have raised more than £48,500.00.
For the year 2024-2025, The Westcountry Rivers Trust is the President’s chosen charity.   Our President Stephen Forsey will be working with the charity over the coming year and is pleased to invite you to take part in a charity walk to raise funds for this fantastic organisation dedicated to protecting and improving our local rivers and waterways.
Route: Lydeard Hill, Wills Neck, and Great Hill Circular, Somerset, England - 365 Reviews, Map | AllTrails
Distance: 8.2 km
Date: Saturday, 22nd March 2025
Time: 2:00pm
The trail offers stunning views across the Quantock Hills, peaceful open moorland, and a chance to enjoy some of the most beautiful landscapes in Somerset.
Who Can Join? Friends, family, and dogs are more than welcome to come along.
Entry Fee: To help raise funds for the West Country Rivers Trust, we’re suggesting an entry fee of £10 per person or £20 per family. Every penny will go towards supporting their incredible work.
Refreshments: There will be refreshments waiting for you at the end of the walk – a perfect way to celebrate completing the trail together!
Sign Up: Please complete the following form - https://forms.office.com/e/YWUnjF5mAd  by 14th March to let us know if you’d like to join.

What to Bring: Comfortable walking shoes, weather-appropriate clothing, and plenty of water.                                                                                                     

Donate:  Crowdfunding to support West Country Rivers Trust. on JustGiving

 

This is a great chance to spend some time outdoors and contribute to an important cause. We’d love to see as many of you, your loved ones, and your furry friends there as possible!
FOR 30 years, the Westcountry Rivers Trust (WRT) has been restoring and protecting the freshwater environments of Devon, Somerset, Cornwall and West Dorset.
The charity, founded in 1994, is the forerunner to the UK and Ireland’s growing rivers trusts network, inspiring more and more people to get involved with caring for their local waterways.
CEO Dr Laurence Couldrick said: “Like many a good idea, the Trust bloomed following a conversation at a pub between anglers wanting to ensure their beloved rivers stayed healthy.
“Their ambitions lay the foundations for the Trust we know today; the original ethos of the charity helped people look at river conservation and restoration in a new way – it still does.
“Everything we do is informed by the best available science and a commitment to an ecosystems approach, which considers the function of an entire catchment, not just the rivers that flow through them.”
That means the charity looks at relevant topics such as soil health, plastic pollution prevention, supporting Catchment Partnerships, researching innovative water storage options, and developing community food growing schemes, which can play a role in the interconnected cycle of a river’s health.
Laurence added: “The past 30 years have seen several incredibly positive results for our river networks.
“This has included schemes supporting the endangered European eel to access the rivers and wetlands of Somerset, plus sustainable drainage in the county through the Somerset Sponge project to the ongoing Upstream Thinking project across Devon and Cornwall working with farmers and partners to improve water quality and reduce and mitigate some of the pressures on our rivers.”
The charity’s flagship citizen science project, Westcountry CSI, started in 2016 and has also inspired national schemes and a growing public interest in monitoring the riverine and water quality testing.
In addition to its Girls Go Fishing activity in Somerset to encourage women to take up catch and release fishing, it is now revamping its educational activities to engage young people with the river environment and piloting a participatory photography project to tell the region’s river stories in new ways.
As a fitting tribute to the past 30 years, and as the charity looks to the future, in December 2023, it won the Environmental Growth and the Overall Winner titles at the Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Sustainability Awards.
“This recognition honours our dedicated staff, volunteers and the people and organisations who have supported and continue to support us to keep bringing rivers to life throughout our region,” Laurence concluded.
Click here to visit their website. 
 

 

If you would like to make a DONATION, please click here