Budding Photographers Capture Suffolk’s Blooms and Beasts

The results are in, and on 4^th December 2022 the Suffolk Flora Preservation Trust announced the deserving winners for its new photography competition, sponsored by Suffolk Building Society’s Saxmundham branch, who judged the winners and created canvases for them to take home.

Members of the public were invited to snap ‘flowers, foliage and wildlife’ at one of the Trust’s two reserves in the county, highlighting some of the minor but vital details in nature.

The Suffolk Flora Preservation Trust is an entirely volunteer-run conservation charity. Its mission is to purchase land to “permanently preserve for the benefit of the public generally, especially the inhabitants of the county of Suffolk, sites of beauty or historical or ecological interest or scientific importance and in particular the natural flora of the county of Suffolk”.

With two wild Reserves — Simpson’s Fromus Valley near Kelsale and Orchid Glade near Hasketon, the Trust relies solely on the hard work and dedication of local volunteers – flora enthusiasts, writers, photographers, artists, scientific recorders, conservationists, Druids and archaeology specialists. They are always keen to hear from new members – who they call Guardians – and volunteers.

The Trust have very kindly gifted a copy of their latest book ‘Building from the Baseline’ – which reveals aspects of the historic landscape and wildlife at Kelsale and Hasketon – to the Saxmundham Suffolk Building Society branch for staff and visitors to browse.

Suffolk Building Society is focused on protecting local nature, to ensure maximum environmental and social change. Founded over 170 years ago to help people acquire land and well-built homes, and in doing so secure the vote, environmental and social issues continue to underpin everything the Society does.

Shelley Curtis, Member Experience Manager at Suffolk Building Society said:

“We always want to put our community and environmental efforts into the right areas and this initiative with the Trust seemed spot on. We carried out research this year to uncover the priorities of local people. Ninety-one percent of respondents in the Eastern region said conserving wildlife and the natural world was the most important social issue to them.

“The Society allows staff paid volunteering of 4 hours per month in positions with our key charity partners or our chosen UN Sustainability Goals. I am going to use some of my volunteering time to join the Trust as a ‘guardian’.”

The Chair of the Trust, Earl of Cranbrook, said of the collaboration: “We welcomed the sponsorship by Suffolk Building Society, and are delighted by the brilliant prize-winning photographs that will be displayed at the Society’s offices. We hope to develop this good relationship with Suffolk Building Society, and their members, in future years.”

Photo caption: From left to right – Celandine Mitchell-Cotts, Evelyn Parkinson, Shelley Curtis from Suffolk Building Society, Ann Follows, Jenny Nutbeem.

1^st Prize Evelyn Parkinson 2^nd to Ann Follows and commendations to the others.