The formation of the McGugan Family Trust is intended to achieve this, and the Trust objects are:

• To retain and maintain the land in its natural state

• To encourage the conservation and study of the flora and fauna of the meadow

• To provide access to the land for educational and recreational purposes to young people (and at the discretion of the Trustees, who in the Trustees’ opinion have need of such facilities) including to the staff and pupils of Grouville Primary School and other groups and associations at the discretion of the Trustees.

Le Pre Arthur is an example of unimproved wet meadow with the potential diverse flora of common wet meadow species. The natural state of the meadow is currently compromised by years of neglect, absence of any management plan and the infra structure to deliver such a plan. The Trustees have now begun to address this by commissioning a rolling, three-year conservation management plan, including invasive species management, seasonal mowing and coppicing. This is vital to the continued improvement of the habitat and the gradual return of native wildlife and intended to meet the Trust object to retain and maintain the land in its natural state.

Improvement of the habitat will provide children and other community and youth groups with the opportunity to celebrate wild nature and provide hands-on opportunities for recreation and citizen science projects. This in turn, will assist both Grouville School and other youth and community groups on the journey to “Green Flag” as part of the States’ Eco-Schools Award programme. To encourage the conservation and study of the flora and fauna of the meadow, a number of activities and interventions are already in place and others are in the planning stages including submitting data to the Jersey Biodiversity Centre. As we build a database of wildlife records, we hope to show an increase in biomass and therefore make our contribution to nature conservation. The Trustees see this as a legacy project and an investment in a vision for conservation for the future and our young people. These efforts are intended to meet the Trust object to encourage the conservation and study of the flora and fauna of the meadow.

The McGugan Family members and Trustees are keen for the meadow to benefit the wider community for both recreation and education. Not all of our children and young people have access to a garden or accessible green space. As part of the plan to achieve community benefit, a number of groups have been approached and confirmed that they would wish to enjoy access to the meadow, support conservation measures and contribute data to the Jersey Biodiversity Centre. These include other primary schools with limited green space, Scout and Guide groups and Jersey MENCAP.

Accessibility is an important part of the future vision for the meadow. There is potential to create a circular route around the meadow and this has been designed to accommodate those with limited mobility and wheelchair users. A meadow survey has been undertaken and planning approval given, to create such a path together with several other educational and leisure facilities, specifically designed with accessibility in mind, including a ‘den’, a ‘fire circle’ and a bird hide. These initiatives are intended to meet the Trust objective of providing access for educational and recreational purposes to the staff and pupils of Grouville Primary School and other groups and associations.