PRESS RELEASE
MALDON NATURE RESERVE STRUCK BY FIRE RE-OPENS
Ironworks Meadow, the award-winning Maldon nature reserve, which was decimated by fire last July, has succeeded in re-opening its walkways in record time. Work on the footpaths was completed last week and includes an additional pathway linking to the newly-cleared pond in the centre of the reserve and steps to the path which crosses between the river and the canal.
The lions’ share of the funds for the repair work was donated by local people in a fundraising appeal following the fire. A director of the Chelmer Blackwater Reserve Community Interest Company which manages it said: “This is a double success for action by local citizens: firstly, in preserving this site from development and secondly in responding so generously following the fire last year.” Additional funding for the work was provided by Maldon District Council’s Where Quality of Life Matters Community Fund and Tesco Stronger Starts.
Bordered by the Chelmer River (which forms the headwaters of the Blackwater Estuary) and the Chelmer & Blackwater Navigation, the reserve has five bio-diverse habitat areas but is easily accessible from Maldon and Heybridge.
New pathways March 2026