Proceedings of the Geologists Association 124 (2013) 691698

Involving local communities and volunteers in geoconservation acrossHerefordshire and Worcestershire, UKthe Community Earth HeritageChampions Project

Evelyn Miles *

Care of Herefordshire and Worcestershire Earth Heritage Trust, Geological Records Centre, University of Worcester, Henwick Grove, Worcester WR2 6AJ, UK

A R T I C L E I N F O

Article history:

Received 21 February 2012

Received in revised form 26 November 2012

Accepted 26 November 2012

Available online 27 December 2012

Keywords:

Geoconservation

Volunteering

Community involvement

Education

A B S T R A C T

Although an increasing number of people are becoming aware of the importance of geological

conservation there is still a long way to go before it achieves the conservation profile and participation

levels enjoyed by wildlife conservation. Local and county based geoconservation groups have achieved a

great deal in the UK in recent years. One of the main challenges they still face is to conserve and monitor

their Local Geological Sites when funding to do so is scare or absent. This lack of resources has meant that

there is little or no capital funding to carry out specific conservation activities or core funding to enable

conservation groups to pay suitably qualified staff/consultants to monitor the condition of their sites.

The Community Earth Heritage Champions Project was primarily developed by the Herefordshire and

Worcestershire Earth Heritage Trust as a solution to these problems; recruiting local volunteers to take

on the monitoring and conservation role at a local level across the counties of Herefordshire and

Worcestershire, England. By taking a number of different approaches towards community involvement,

there are now 19 geological sites, all in excellent condition, that are being monitored by groups of keen

individuals who are willing to promote geological conservation to other members of their community.

One of the main achievements of this project has been the success in convincing those with no prior

interest, that geology is a fascinating and important field of scientific study and that geological sites are

worthy of conservation.

2012 The Geologists Association. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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1. Introduction

All those within the geological community would agree that theongoing conservation and monitoring of our important geologicalsites is vital to both scientific study and the training of the Earthscientists needed to find and supply the natural resources,including building materials and water, on which society depends(Prosser et al., 2011). However, of equal importance is theeducation and awareness raising of the public, landowners andthe government in the importance of geological conservation,especially as our geological heritage is still vulnerable to damageand loss and its conservation remains a relatively low priorityamongst most decision makers and members of the public (Prosseret al., 2011). Although more and more people are now becomingaware of the importance of geological conservation, there is still along way to go before it achieves the conservation profile andparticipation levels enjoyed by wildlife conservation (Prosser et al.,2011).

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +44 01905 855184.

E-mail address: evelyn_miles@hotmail.co.uk.

0016-7878/$ see front matter 2012 The Geologists Association. Published by Elsehttp://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pgeola.2012.11.003

One of the main challenges local and county geologicalconservation groups, such as the Herefordshire and Worcester-shire Earth Heritage Trust, face is to conserve and monitor theirLocal Geological Sites (Whiteley and Browne, 2013). A significantlack of core funding has led to a shortage of paid staff/consultantsable to undertake this vital work. The Community Earth HeritageChampions Project was developed primarily as a solution to thisproblem. The project aimed to involve local communities in theprocess of conservation and monitoring so that this work could betaken on at a local level by volunteers, resulting in less reliance onthe county group to find and fund paid staff or consultants.

Despite the origin of this project stemming from a lack offunding for geoconservation, some start-up funding had to beobtained in order for local volunteers to be able to take on thiswork. This was needed to provide equipment, training andpublicity as well as to undertake initial site specific improvementssuch as large-scale site clearance and interpretation materials. InApril 2008, and after succeeding in an application process, theHerefordshire and Worcestershire Earth Heritage Trust wasawarded a three and a half year grant by the Heritage LotteryFund (HLF) (Heritage Lottery Fund, 2012) to set up the CommunityEarth Heritage Champions Project. Additional funding was alsoreceived from Natural England through Defras Aggregates Levy

vier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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E. Miles / Proceedings of the Geologists Association 124 (2013) 691698692

Sustainability Fund (ALSF) (Natural England, 2011), the MalvernHills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the Tomlinson BrownTrust. In total, the value of the project came to 464,000, with92,000 of this coming from volunteer time.

As well as providing a means of protecting important LocalGeological Sites, the Community Earth Heritage Champions Projectalso aimed to involve local communities in the utilisation of thesenineteen key geological sites for use by the community foreducation and recreation. Asking the volunteers recruited throughthe project, the Champions, to publicise the importance ofgeological conservation within their local community and showingthem how useful geological sites can be in terms of education andrecreation, led to an increased number of individuals, landownersand organisations across Herefordshire and Worcestershirebecoming aware of the importance and relevance of geologyand geological conservation.

Table 1Showing the criteria used for selecting the Champions Sites.

Criteria used for selecting the Champions Sites

Interesting geology In particular geological features t

An active community It was essential to have a group o

A wide geographic spread It was important to ensure that s

This was so that a wide range of

Herefordshire on the Welsh bord

A wide range of geological formations

and features between the sites

The aim was to show the volunte

how their site fitted in with the g

ages, the geological evolution of t

A willing landowner It was vital to the success of the

of volunteers use a geological site

use it for education and recreatio

Easily accessible As these sites would be used by t

project were safe, or would be sa

including aspects such as safety,

Table 2Showing the nineteen Community Earth Heritage Champions Sites and their designati

Worcestershire (1) Tank Quarry

(2) Dingle Quarry

(3) Westminster Bank Quarry

(4) Abberley

(5) Bewdley

(6) Hadley Quarry

(7) Scar Cottage Quarry

(8) Callow Hill Quarry

(9) Lickey Hills Quarries

Herefordshire (1) Bradnor Hill Quarry

(2) Linton Quarry

(3) King Arthurs Cave and Quarry

(4) Croft Castle Quarries

(5) Coppett Hill

(6) Little Doward

(7) Rudge End Quarry

(8) Loxter Ashbed Quarry

(9) Gardiners Quarry

(10) Whitmans Hill Quarry

a Explanation of acronyms: LGS, Local Geological Site; AONB, Area of Outstanding

Monument; SAC, Special Area of Conservation; and LNR, Local Nature Reserve.

2. Identifying the Community Earth Heritage Champions sites

Following the Heritage Lottery Fund award, the first stage of theproject was to identify those sites which would be used as part ofthe project. Despite the initial application stating that there wouldbe 36 geological sites included within the project, it was decidedearly on, and agreed with the Heritage Lottery Fund, that areduction in the number of sites would mean more time andmoney could be spent on the individual sites, resulting in higherquality work and more confident community groups.

Based on the local geology, an initial shortlist of 50 sites wasmade, which was then narrowed down to nineteen using a numberof key criteria (Table 1).

In cases where one large geological site could not be found, anumber of smaller sites within a concentrated area, such as a townor local landscape, were identified instead (Table 2). For each site, alandowner agreement was drawn up to ensure that both the

hat could be easily recognised and understood by the general public.

f individuals for each site willing to volunteer.

ites were spread as widely across the two counties as possible (Fig. 1).

communities could be involved in the project, from sites in rural

er, to sites adjacent to the City of Birmingham.

ers not only the fascinating geological features at their own sites but also

eological evolution of the area. By having sites with formations of different

he area could be illustrated using specific site examples (Fig. 1).

project to identify landowners who were not only willing to let a group

on their land, but to then let members of the public come to the site and

n.

he general public, it was important to ensure the sites being used for the

fe following any site works. The approach to the site also had to be considered,

distance from the community and facilities such as parking.

ons.

Champions site name Site designationsa

LGS, AONB, SSSI

LGS, AONB, SSSI

LGS, AONB, SSSI

a. Shavers End Quarry LGS

b. Valley of the Rocks LGS

a. Bark Hill LGS

b. Severn Valley Railway Station

c. The Holding Pens

d. Bewdley Bridge

e. St. Annes Church

LGS

LGS

a. Warren Lane Quarry LGS

b. Barnt Green Road Quarry

LGS, SSSI

LGS, SSSI

LGS, SSSI, SAM, SAC

a. Lime Kiln Quarry LGS, SSSI

b. Highwood Bank Quarry LGS, SSSI

AONB, LNR

a. Quartz Conglomerate Cliff LGS, AONB, SSSI, SAC

b. Tintern Sandstone Quarry LGS, AONB, SSSI, SAC

c. Lower Dolomite Cliff LGS, AONB, SSSI, SAC

d. Limestone Pavement LGS, AONB, SSSI, SAC, SAM

LGS, AONB, SSSI

LGS, AONB

LGS, AONB, SSSI

LGS, AONB

Natural Beauty; SSSI, Site of Special Scientific Interest; SAM, Scheduled Ancient

Fig. 1. Showing the geology of the area and the location of the Champions Sites. Please note that geological periods, rather than the specific geological formations arerepresented.

E. Miles / Proceedings of the Geologists Association 124 (2013) 691698 693

landowner and the Champions were clear about the activities thatwould be undertaken. All of the agreements extend past the end ofthe funding period to ensure the project could continue post-funding.

Those sites that were not designated as Local Geological Sites atthe beginning of the project were subsequently shortlisted fordesignation at the next county Local Geological Site panelmeeting.

3. Informing and involving the community

The initial approach in informing the community about thisproject involved sending press releases out to the local, regionaland national press, along with letters to all local communitygroups, organisations, schools and colleges and parish, district andcounty councils.

It was decided that the best approach for recruiting volunteerswas to hold a public meeting in the parish around each site, usuallyin a village hall. This method gave local people an opportunity toquestion the project manager directly about what the projectentailed and the level of their involvement. Where possible thepublic meeting was combined with a visit to the site so the localcommunity could see the geology and the extent of each site(Fig. 2). To publicise each meeting, a combination of methods wasused including articles and notices for local newsletters, websitesand notice boards as well as targeted letters to different groups andorganisations. Though more time consuming, posting flyersthrough local peoples doors was most effective in bringing peopleto meetings. Each meeting covered the aims of the project, anoverview of local geology and the reason why this site had beenchosen. The holistic approach of the project to include the

relationships between geology, ecology and archaeology was alsoemphasised. People were invited to sign up to be a Champion fortheir local site at these meetings, and the majority of the volunteersnow involved with the Community Earth Heritage Championsproject were recruited at this point.

4. The Champions

The role of the Champions is to carry out conservation work,promote the use of the site to other people in their parish andmonitor the site for any changes in condition. They have beenworking closely with the landowners at each site and have heldevents at their sites including guided walks, music festivals andphotography competitions. The original proposal was to have onevolunteer Champion per site but in order to maximise thelikelihood of the site being looked after once the project ended,it was decided to recruit additional volunteers and create aChampions Group for each site. This has proven very effective,especially in the organisation of site events. Being able to draw onthe strengths of many volunteers from different backgroundsmeant that the events were well organised and well presented. Ithas also made the groups more sustainable because if onevolunteer decides to withdraw, the group will still continue inthe area.

At the time of writing (February 2012), there are 83 volunteerChampions (Table 3). Nine of them have been recruited solely bythe Champions groups in the 5 months since the funding periodended in September 2011. This demonstrates that the groups aremanaging to recruit additional volunteers from the local commu-nity without input from the Herefordshire and WorcestershireEarth Heritage Trust an important post-project aim.

Fig. 2. A site visit undertaken at Callow Hill Quarry Champions Site following apublic talk aimed at recruiting Champions.

see Callow Hill Quarry Booklet (Herefordshire and Worcestershire Earth Heritage

Trust, 2011b).

Table 4A table showing the content of the formal training days.

Training provided to the Champions

One day county council training Vegetation clearance Use of hand tools (including

care of tools)

Guided walks Planning events How to recruit volunteers

One day Earth Heritage

Trust theory training

Health and safety including riskassessments

Basic geology including the threebasic rock types

The geological history of Herefordshireand Worcestershire

Identifying rocks in the field Reading and understanding geological

maps

One day Earth Heritage Trust

practical training

(run at each individual site)

Identifying important geological features Understanding the geology of your site Areas to be kept clear of vegetation

and areas to leave

Using geological equipment

One day first aid training Basic first aid (appointed person) Outdoor and expedition first aid

E. Miles / Proceedings of the Geologists Association 124 (2013) 691698694

5. Preparing the Champions

In order for the project to work it was vital to provide theChampions with the correct training and equipment needed inorder to deliver the aims of the project in a safe and effective way(Tables 4 and 5).

Table 3Showing the number of Champions for each Community Earth Heritage Champions

Site as of February 2012.

Champions site name Number of

Champions

Worcestershire Tank Quarry 2

Dingle Quarry 3

Westminster Bank Quarry 3

Abberley 2

Bewdley 4

Hadley Quarry 6

Scar Cottage Quarry 1

Callow Hill Quarry 7

Lickey Hills Quarries 12

Herefordshire Bradnor Hill Quarry 8

Linton Quarry 1

King Arthurs Cave and Quarry 3

Croft Castle Quarries 6

Coppett Hill 7

Little Doward 2

Rudge End Quarry 1

Loxter Ashbed Quarry 6

Gardiners Quarry 4

Whitmans Hill Quarry 5

Total number of Champions 83

A small number of training days were run with all volunteersattending rather than lots of small training days for theindividual groups. The advantage of having large 1 day trainingevents involving all of the volunteers, was that the Championswere able to share ideas with people from other sites and this hashelped to strengthen the links between the groups. Training wasalso given on a more group sepcific basis about site specificfeatures and local funding opportunities available for individualgroups.

The Champions were provided with the equipment they wouldneed to protect and use their geological site (Table 5) and givenpolo shirts with the project logo, which they were able to wear attheir public events. By having a project logo the volunteers weregiven a sense of belonging, as well as a symbol that could be usedon promotional and interpretative materials.

As well as the standard equipment boxes the Champions weregiven the opportunity to request individual items for their sitesuch as display boards, A-frames, specialist tools and fossilreplicas.

Table 5Showing the equipment provided to the Champions Groups.

Contents of the vegetation

clearance tools box

Contents of the geological and guided

walk equipment box

Cigar stone OS map

Metal file Geological map

Pick Compass clinometer

Bow saw Fossils guide

Secateurs Minerals guide

Refuse bags Rocks guide

Hedge shears Hi-visibility jackets

Loppers First aid kit

Grass hook Hard hats

Pick handle Community conservation guide

Spade Woodland guide

Shovel Conservation how and why

Rake Weather writer

Slasher Photograph scale card

Litter pickers Geological reference cards (set)

Fork Hand lenses

Gloves (pairs) Specimen bags (large and small)

Fig. 3. The Bewdley Champions undertaking vegetation clearance work on their site.see Bewdley Booklet (Herefordshire and Worcestershire Earth Heritage Trust,

2011c).

Table 7Showing the type of interpretation materials produced for each Champions site

(booklets available from: www.earthheritagetrust.org).

Champions site name Number

of panels

Number

of booklets

Worcestershire Tank Quarry 2 1a

Dingle Quarry 1 1a

Westminster Bank Quarry 1a

Abberley 4 1

Bewdley 2 1

Hadley Quarry 1

Scar Cottage Quarry 1

Callow Hill Quarry 1 1

Lickey Hills Quarries 3 1

Herefordshire Bradnor Hill Quarry 1

Linton Quarry 2

King Arthurs Cave and Quarry 1

Croft Castle Quarries 2

Coppett Hill 1

Little Doward 1

Rudge End Quarry 1

Loxter Ashbed Quarry 2

Gardiners Quarry 1 1a

Whitmans Hill Quarry 1

a The Malvern Hills Booklet includes information for these sites.

E. Miles / Proceedings of the Geologists Association 124 (2013) 691698 695

6. Improving the sites

In order to ensure that all of the important features of each sitewere recognised and conserved, a site management plan wasdrawn up. Each plan includes information about the geologicalfeatures of the site as well as the ecological and archaeologicalinterest. As the expertise of the Herefordshire and WorcestershireEarth Heritage Trust is primarily geology, external consultantswere used to acquire information about the ecological andarchaeological interest features at each site. The site managementplans also include suggestions for areas of interest within the siteas well as educational activities for school pupils at a range oflearning levels and ages.

The Champions undertook vegetation clearance work followingtheir training in order to improve the site condition (Fig. 3). For afew of the sites, further contracted clearance work was needed aswell as the installation of fencing, gates and steps (see Table 6).

Bespoke interpretation materials and education packs werealso created through the project (Table 7). In some placesinterpretation panels were constructed but in areas where itwas felt that an interpretation panel would detract from the localenvironment, booklets were produced instead (Fig. 4). In areas ofhigh footfall, both interpretation panels and booklets wereprovided.

It was considered important to include not only geologicalinformation in the interpretation materials but also ecological andarchaeological information. One of the main aims of the project

Table 6Showing the Champions Sites that underwent large scale site works.

Champions Site Large scale site works undertaken

Tank Quarry Removal of trees from the education area

Abberley, Valley of the Rocks Flattening of quarry floor

Bewdley, The Holding Pens Installation of a small fence and gate

Lickey Hills Quarries,

Barnt Green Road Quarry

Complete clearance of the rock face and

quarry floor and installation of fencing

and steps

Linton Quarry Clearance of vegetation and building of a

car park and fencing

Rudge End Quarry Installation of a new gate

Loxter Ashbed Quarry Removal of trees, flattening of quarry floor

and installation of fencing and steps

Gardiners Quarry Removal of trees from quarry perimeter

Whitmans Hill Quarry Bringing more fossil hunting material up

to the education area

was to show the public that the environment is an interactivesystem that should not be viewed from just one specialist aspect.For this reason all the interpretation materials include ecologicaland archaeological sections in addition to the geology.

It was important to involve the volunteers and landowners inthe production of the interpretation materials. For some sites thevolunteers actually created their own interpretation panels, whichwere then just fitted to the design template provided by the EarthHeritage Trust.

Having the Champions input meant that the interpretationmaterials could be made as accessible as possible to those withlittle or no geological knowledge. Being involved in the decisionmaking process meant that the Champions were able to feel moreconnected with their site, and strengthen their commitment tocaring for it. Having the landowners involvement was alsoimportant as it is intended that the panels and booklets willcontinue to be used for many years and as such it was importantthat owners were supportive of them.

7. A case study Lickey Hills Quarries Champions Site

The Lickey Hills are located 11 miles south-west of Birminghamcity centre. They form a natural boundary between southwestBirmingham and Worcestershire that is controlled by a faultbounded block of uplifted and folded quartzites and associated thinintercalated mudstones of Ordovician age. Surrounding this upliftedblock are rocks of Silurian, Carboniferous, Permian and Triassic age.One of the first accounts of the Lickey Hills was provided by CharlesLapworth (Lapworth et al., 1898) as part of the GeologistsAssociations Long Excursion to the Birmingham District. TheChampions Project has produced a new geological guide to thearea (Herefordshire and Worcestershire Earth Heritage Trust,2011a) and the Geologists Association revisited the location aspart of Geoconservation for Science and Society: an Agenda for the21st Century conference in 2011 (Larwood et al., 2011).

There are two quarries within the Lickey Hills Country Park,which are being used for the Champions Project: Warren LaneQuarry and Barnt Green Road Quarry. Warren Lane Quarry is usedby the Lickey Hills Rangers as a work yard and storage area,however the public are allowed in on pre-arranged visits. BarntGreen Road Quarry, exposing the Ordovician Lickey Quartzite, is

http://www.earthheritagetrust.org/

Fig. 4. Examples of the site interpretation booklets produced as part of the project.

E. Miles / Proceedings of the Geologists Association 124 (2013) 691698696

the only Champions Site used in the project which is open to thepublic at all times.

7.1. Site work

Warren Lane Quarry did not require any clearance work as therock face is already exposed. Barnt Green Road Quarry, however,had no visible rock exposure before the project started and so largescale clearance works using a contractor had to be undertaken(Figs. 5 and 6). Additional work was carried out on a voluntarybasis by the West Midlands Fire Service who cleaned the front ofthe newly created rock face using high pressure water hoses afterthe contractor had finished.

7.2. Interpretation

As there were two quarries within the Country Park that werebeing used for the project it was decided a booklet linking the two

Fig. 5. Large-scale site clearance underway at Barnt Green Road Quarry.

was necessary. A route was created and waymarkers installedalong the route in the park (Fig. 7). As the only fully publiclyaccessible site, it was decided to include three interpretationpanels in Barnt Green Road Quarry. A permanent display was alsocreated for the Lickey Hills Visitor Centre.

7.3. Launch event

The launch event for this site was two-fold. There was a previewlaunch which was run two weeks prior to the public launch, towhich the Champions invited members of the local parish councils,funders, local school head teachers and members of the press. Theaim of the preview launch was to make the leaders of variouscommunity organisations aware of the public launch event so theycould publicise it in their local communities.

Fig. 6. Barnt Green Road Quarry fully cleared and showing greatly improved andaccessible exposure of the Ordovician Lickey Quartzite.

Photograph Colin Prosser.

Fig. 7. One of the Lickey Hills Champions waymarkers showing the Championslogo that gave the project its strong identity.

E. Miles / Proceedings of the Geologists Association 124 (2013) 691698 697

The main public launch included a childrens activity sheet andfamily quiz created by the Champions as well as displays. They alsoran guided walks at set times throughout the day that were wellattended with approximately 20 people on each of the walks.

8. Sustainability

The most important aspect of the Community Earth HeritageChampions Project is the sustainability of the work beingundertaken once the project funding ended and, in particular,the likelihood of these sites continuing to be looked after by thelocal community for years to come. The sustainability of the projectis solely down to the dedication of the volunteers involved, and sothe main focus of this project was to enthuse, educate and instilconfidence in these volunteer Champions through effectivetraining and support.

A number of methods were used to ensure the sustainability ofthe project post-funding:

Creating a Champions Group for each site rather than anindividual Champion. Ensuring the landowner agreements extended past the end of the

funding period. Providing the Champions with appropriate training and equip-

ment in order to enable them to carry out conservation work,leading and running events and guided walks and promotingtheir site to their local community. Ensuring the relationship between the Champions and the

landowner is strong so future work can continue on site. Ensuring the relationship between the Champions Groups is

strong by running training events and a final thank you eventwith all site groups attending. The creation of a Champions website (hosted by the Here-

fordshire and Worcestershire Earth Heritage Trust). The websiteprovides a place for the Champions to continue to communicateand share experiences (see: www.champions-earthheritagetrust.org). The sale of some of the interpretation booklets providing funding

for future work. The Champions have been provided with forms to send into the

Trust for various purposes including event details and promo-tion, risk assessments, site monitoring forms and new volunteerinformation. This has ensured the Champions will remain

compliant with requirements for the insurance cover providedby the Herefordshire and Worcestershire Earth Heritage Trustwhilst minimising the amount of work they have to do. In the long term, while the Champions act independently, their

confidence is strengthened in the knowledge that the Here-fordshire and Worcestershire Earth Heritage Trust can provideon-going guidance beyond the life of the project

The interest in this project is still growing with additionalvolunteers being recruited, events being run and further workbeing undertaken at all sites the Champions are continuing topromote the importance of geological conservation at a local level.

9. Conclusions

When speaking to the public it is clear that one of the mainreasons people do not recognise the importance of geologicalconservation is that they cannot see its relevance why do weneed to protect something that has always been there? Whyshould I care about something that is not alive it is only a rock?The most effective approach when speaking to the general publicabout geology is to make it relevant to them and their lives.Looking at the chemistry of a granite will not enthuse the generalpublic unless they have an interest in chemistry, whereas talking tothem about how sandstone was used to build their house or localchurch, or how their favourite orchid grows in their gardenbecause of the underlying limestone, will demonstrate howgeology is relevant to them. By bringing in the aspects of ecologyand archaeology into the project more interest was gained from thegeneral public by showing the natural world as a whole system.People want to look after, and are interested in learning about, ourenvironment, but unlike plants and animals, they do not usuallysee geology as something that needs to be conserved.

By taking these approaches through the project there are nownineteen groups of keen individuals who are willing to promotegeological conservation to other members of their community. Oneof the main achievements of this project was the success inconvincing those with no prior interest in geology that it is afascinating and important field of scientific study and an importantarea of conservation. Establishing a local Champions group mayinitially require significant time and funding but, if donesuccessfully as demonstrated here, it is an approach that can besustained beyond the initial investment and even grow into thefuture.

The template used by the Community Earth Heritage Cham-pions Project could easily be applied in other to other areas andother sites. It could be scaled-down to one or two sites with a dozenvolunteers or scaled-up to a regional area with many sitesand hundreds of volunteers. As long as there is sufficient time andmoney to provide the volunteers with adequate training andsupport there is no restriction on the scale of a similar or equivalentproject.

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank the Herefordshire and WorcestershireEarth Heritage Trust for the opportunity to run and develop thisproject and for the support received from my colleaguesthroughout. I would also like to thank Colin Prosser, DavidBridgland, Eleanor Brown and Jonathan Larwood for commission-ing this paper and Peter Oliver (Herefordshire and WorcestershireEarth Heritage Trust), Colin Prosser, Jonathan Larwood and twoanonymous reviewers for comments and suggestions on improv-ing it. Thanks are also extended to all of the contributing funders ofthe project: the Heritage Lottery Fund, Natural England throughDefras Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund, the Malvern Hills

http://www.champions-earthheritage trust.org/http://www.champions-earthheritage trust.org/

E. Miles / Proceedings of the Geologists Association 124 (2013) 691698698

Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the Tomlinson BrownTrust. Most importantly, I would like to thank all of theChampions and project volunteers for their dedication, hardwork and for making the Community Earth Heritage ChampionsProject such a success.

References

Herefordshire and Worcestershire Earth Heritage Trust, 2011a. Lickey Hills BarntGreen Road Quarry. Available from: www.earthheritagetrust.org, 34 pp.

Herefordshire, Worcestershire Earth Heritage Trust, 2011b. Callow Hill Quarry.Available from: www.earthheritagetrust.org, 8 pp.

Herefordshire and Worcestershire Earth Heritage Trust, 2011c. Bewdley. Availablefrom: www.earthheritagetrust.org, 20 pp.

Heritage Lottery Fund, 2012. Heritage Lottery Fund Strategic Framework 20132018: A Lasting Difference for Heritage and People. Heritage Lottery FundAvailable from: www.hlf.org.uk, 23 pp.

Lapworth, C., Watts, W.W., Harrison, J.W., 1898. Sketch of the Geology of theBirmingham District with special reference to the long excursion of 1898.Proceedings of the Geologists Association 9 (10), 313389.

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Prosser, C.D., Bridgland, D.R., Brown, E.J., Larwood, J.G., 2011. Geoconservation forscience and society: challenges and opportunities. Proceedings of the Geolo-gists Association 122, 337342.

Whiteley, M.J., Browne, M.A.E., 2013. Local geoconservation groups past achieve-ments and future challenges. Proceedings of the Geologists Association 124,674680.

http://www.earthheritagetrust.org/http://www.earthheritagetrust.org/http://www.earthheritagetrust.org/http://www.hlf.org.uk/http://www.geologistsassociation.org.uk/http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/Involving local communities and volunteers in geoconservation across Herefordshire and Worcestershire, UK-the Community Earth Heritage Champions ProjectIntroductionIdentifying the Community Earth Heritage Champions sitesInforming and involving the communityThe ChampionsPreparing the ChampionsImproving the sitesA case study - Lickey Hills Quarries Champions SiteSite workInterpretationLaunch eventSustainabilityConclusionsAcknowledgementsReferences