Sustainable Bucklebury

It is widely known that as the world warms, extreme weather is leading to melting ice caps, rising sea levels, and more frequent extreme weather events making it harder for farmers to grow crops with some animals and plant species being driven to extinction.

BUT with your involvement, we can make a difference.

By joining the many other successful community sustainability groups across the local area, we will be bringing together Bucklebury residents, businesses, schools, church and community groups, clubs and societies to be involved in any way they can.

Acting sustainably is an option for all of us, from taking small steps at home to volunteering on bigger projects. Every small action makes a difference.

We want to make the Sustainable Bucklebury group an enjoyable community endeavour, whether you want to simply access more information, occasionally join a project for a couple of hours or get more involved.

We would like to determine local interest in participating with the Sustainable Bucklebury initiative. We are not experts, just a group of very enthusiastic people wanting to encourage more positive action.

To live more sustainably change just one thing!

Do you, or could you...

Shop locally?
Turn off your appliances on stand-by?
Dry your washing on a line or rack?
Go/try vegetarian an extra day a week?
Reduce your food waste by making meal plans and using/freezing leftovers?
Recycle your food waste using your kerbside caddy?*
Turn your heating down by 1 degree?
Reduce your shower time by 1 minute?
Start growing your own vegetables?
Pick up and dispose of rubbish when you see it?

*Approximately only 25% of homes in West Berkshire use their food waste kerbside caddies. Food waste sent to landfill releases methane, 25 times worse for the environment than carbon dioxide. Your food waste is recycled at Padworth and turned into soil conditioner – available free to households on certain days throughout the year.

All of these initiatives reduce carbon dioxide emissions but also save you money!

Current Initiatives

There are already sustainability initiatives underway in Bucklebury with many individuals incorporating sustainable practices. We hope that Sustainable Bucklebury will kickstart more people to get involved and get more projects off the ground.

West Berkshire Countryside Society carries out extensive work on the common with volunteers helping to maintain habitats and biodiversity
Common Clearing by volunteers happens twice a year organised by the Parish Council
Clothes and shoe recycling bins at The Memorial Hall
Book exchange at the telephone box in Chapel Row
St Crispins Farm/Workwild
Round The Field Market Garden
ARK – Action for River Kennet
Bucklebury Estate – The replanting of hundreds of replacement native trees providing new varied environments for flora and fauna

We aim to help promote and raise awareness of local initiatives. If you are involved in any of the above, or if we missed out a sustainability project that you are involved in, please let us know.

Future Ideas

What are your ideas for Sustainable Bucklebury? Here are some possibilities but let us know yours.

Sustainability workshop in the autumn/winter showing how we can all can make a difference (date and venue to be confirmed) Register your interest now using our contact form.
Restarting the monthly local produce market
Repair café – getting your belongings assessed/repaired in a sustainable way
Plastic Free Bucklebury - removing avoidable single-use plastics by tackling plastic pollution at source
Enable more local recycling - e.g. small electrical goods, batteries, soft plastics, etc.
Advising residents on ways to manage their rainwater collection, preventing rapid run-off into the streams and rivers
Improve footpath/cycle links between villages and to local facilities
Planting of wildflower gardens and meadows, including The Hockett Field