Meades Water Gardens
Meades Water Gardens, a 3-acre site located off Red Lion Street, is a splendid natural habitat in the centre of the town and forms a stretch of the Chess Valley Walk.
History
Originally the site of the mill pond for Amy Mill and later developed into water cress beds, the River Chess was converted into an ornamental lake to create recreational gardens in 1979. The Garden was awarded a commendation by the Civic Trust in 1980. Unfortunately, the design of the gardens was unsustainable as the lakes have silted up over time. The lakes were dredged in the 1990s, but this expensive process would need to be continually repeated to maintain this ornamental feature.
Meades Water Gardens Regeneration
The Impress the Chess project, led by the Council and the Chilterns Conservation Board, raised over £60,000 to regenerate the Water Gardens and improve its wildlife value. The ornamental pond was converted back to the natural stream habitat. The River Chess is a chalk stream, which is a globally rare habitat and characteristic of the Chilterns. Chalk streams support a huge range of wildlife from brown trout to watercress, so the restoration of this habitat is very important to the area.
Essential tree work was carried out in March 2007 to increase light levels and improve tree health. The chalk stream was reinstated in February 2008. The final phase of the project saw footpaths improved, fences upgraded and bridges renovated to enhance people’s access to and enjoyment of the site. Work was completed in July 2008, when the Gardens were officially re-opened by the Mayor, Cllr Alison Pirouet. This was an opportunity to thank all those partners who supported the project, including those who provided technical expertise, in-kind support and funding.
The Regeneration project would not have been possible without the support of the following organisations:
Chesham Town Council
In 2008, the project was awarded the highly prestigious Environment and Culture Award in the SE England Market Towns Awards, recognising the innovation and highly successful partnership approach of this project.
Meades Water Gardens Wildlife
The River Chess in the Gardens is home to wildfowl, including moorhens and ducks. A variety of birds nest in the trees, and grey squirrels set up their drays. The stream homes a number of plants, including watercress and ranunculus, and sticklebacks and freshwater shrimp have already re-colonised the new stream channel.
Meades Water Gardens is supported by the work of the Impress the Chess project. To find out more, visit the Impress the Chess page.
