History of Westbury Wildlife Park
A short history of the park.
Westbury Wildlife Park was officially opened in 1963 by naturalist Sir Peter Scott, son of the famous Scott of the Antarctic and founder of Slimbridge Wetlands Trust. The WWPF was the brainchild of the son of a local architect, David Chaffe. David wanted to open a wildlife park that was interactive with the animals. Open pens, aviaries and ponds housed native and exotic mammals and birds, all to be accessible with a guide, and animal feed was available in the gift shop.
Built on land that was gifted by the Badock Estate to the National Children's Home (Now Action For Children), a 16 year lease was granted to David and work began in earnest in the early 1960’s. 5 ponds were built to host fish and aquatic birds. Rare geese and ducks were seen wandering around the park freely (sometimes too freely). The peacock was a great escape artist, as were the goats who had to be rescued many times from the roofs of houses in the Village.
A large pond in the middle of the park housed two seals with their own grotto and many deer were in the sunny meadows on the banks of the valley. The Park was also used as a sanctuary for injured animals. Abandoned Fox cubs and a Buzzard with one wing all called the park their home. David would often take the park to the road, bringing Badger cubs and birds to primary schools to interact with school children.
When the lease was up, David decided to pass the park on due to his failing health, and the 80’s saw the decline of the wildlife park. Changing attitudes and more stringent laws meant the upkeep was harder and it became more expensive to maintain. The Park obtained charitable status in 1983 with the mission of “Providing a sanctuary for the maintenance, preservation and breeding of wild birds, animals, plants, insects or other wildlife, managing and restoring the park’s natural and architectural features to facilitate conservation projects, educational activities and recreation.”
Several applications were submitted in the 1990’s for projects at the park. However, with the death of Jimmy Rogers in 1997 these plans were not successful. It was decided then by the trustees to let the park become a sanctuary for local wildlife.
In the years that followed the park was slowly retaken by nature and the woodlands encroached on the meadowland on the north banks and the wildlife settled in. Jacky Young and the trustees maintained the buildings and infrastructure for the next 25 years until the fateful year of 2020.
With the arrival of the Covid pandemic and the obvious open space poverty for some parts of the community in Bristol, the restoration of the park commenced with the help of some 4000 volunteer hours from the local community, working in bubble and family groups.
The ‘Gardens’ and front ponds were opened in 2021 with the intention of engaging with groups on the fringes of society that had been badly affected by the pandemic. Groups with autism, dementia and other disabilities found they could use the park exclusively, in the knowledge they would be safe from infection and without the intrusion of dogs. As the pandemic subsided the park was slowly opened to the public, first with family open days over specific weekends and finally in 2022, open every weekend in the Spring to Autumn months.
With our regular volunteers, headed by Paul Harvey, the gardens and ponds at the front of the park have been painstakingly and lovingly restored and maintained. 80% of the 13 acres has been left as a designated wildlife sanctuary, and the park is still a rewilding marvel in the Bristol Suburbs.
In 2022 we opened a circular walk around the woodlands and created an activity hub, cafe, wellbeing studio and an outdoor kitchen. This evolving project has always had the objective of preservation, conservation and education at the heart of it. Although public opinion has changed on zoo’s the intention is, and always has been, to inform and engage the next generation of Nature and Wildlife Enthusiasts.
