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In July 2023, The Friends of Harrold-Odell Country Park also jointly won the ‘Keep it Wild’ Category in the CPRE Bedfordshire Living Countryside Awards 2023! Another prestigious award for a special group of people. The judges highlighted the sense of community amongst the volunteers and the variety of ways in which they are engaging visitors with the biodiversity of the Country Park. You can find out more about the Awards here. Ed Green, Country Park Officer.
We have been given the Green Flag Award for the 16th consecutive year. We were judged to have met international standards in a range of criteria, overall scoring top marks (between 80 and 100/100) again. Congratulations to all the volunteers and staff who have contributed to this, not just in the last year, but over the preceding 15 as well – an incredible achievement and one everybody can be proud of!
WILDLIFE NEWS
A visit in summer 2022 by the Bedfordshire Invertebrate Group to HOCP found a willow-feeding species of sawfly, Arge enodis, which is the first British record since 1970 and never recorded before in Bedfordshire. In the 2022 sawfly status review this species had just been declared extinct in Britain.
There are images on the following web site: Arge enodis (Linnaeus, 1767) - Sawflies
Opening Hours
The Park is open to visitors 365 days a year. This also applies to the main car park but not to the overspill car park which closes at 5:00pm each day.
For details of the Dragonfly café opening hours, please click here.
The Park is owned and managed by Bedford Borough Council. The Friends of Harrold-Odell Country Park work in partnership with Council staff and run this web site.
Emergencies should be reported to the staff or direct to the appropriate emergency service.
