The development of Priory Fields is an ongoing process. Apart from regular maintenance such as grass cutting and keeping weeds and brambles under control there are various projects we hope to carry out in the near future.
Our priority this year is to tidy up the hedge along our eastern boundary, adjacent to the Priory Playing Field and school, and clear out the ditch along side it to improve drainage and the visual appearance.
With the aid of the Maldon Archaeological and History Group, who have been researching the area around the arch, we propose to mark out, on the ground, the outline of the Priory to give an idea of its size and layout.
In order to form a more natural background to the Priory arch we intend to plant a varied hedge around the south and west sides of the arch compound.
We are planning to construct a small footbridge across the ditch from the West Water-meadow to the West Meadow to create an alternative route around the fields.
Our aim is to continually improve the all weather access on paths by building up low, waterlogged areas as has already been done in some places.
In the hopes of increasing the number of wildlife species seen on the fields we intend to create artificial habitats in the form of bird boxes, bat boxes and even dormouse boxes. It is hoped that local children will be involved in the making of these boxes and monitoring their use.
It has been suggested that we could plant a small orchard of old English varieties of various types of fruit trees. We are currently looking into the most suitable varieties and site for this project.
Finally it is our intention that Priory Fields should host a variety of activities and events to enable a wider selection of the community to benefit from the features that this valuable local amenity has to offer.
