On the bright, sunny afternoon of 21^st March 2026 Soth Stainley turned out in force for a scheduled churchyard clear up. There were 21 volunteers, aged 6 to 86, a lovely mix of the church congregation and interested villagers.

With so many helpers (some with wonderful power tools) a lot was achieved: the strimmed dead grass was raked up to help the wildflowers (this was a really tough job) and a new hedgehog habitat was created at the foot of the yew tree (this idea came from Sharow Church – always an eco-inspiration). The ivy which was strangling the trees was cut back and the hedges trimmed to created better access and visibility along the paths and gravesides. The Church Warden Julia Roe, who organised the event, commented, ‘I was really pleased to see how many wild flowers are already taking root, including primroses and a bank of wild garlic.’