A GROUP set up by a band of volunteers dedicated to conserving Ilkley Moor is celebrating its tenth anniversary in 2018.

Since it was formed The Friends of Ilkley Moor (FoIM) have raised in cash and volunteer labour of more than £425,000 - £200,000 in cash and £225,000 in volunteer labour.

They have published ten events and learning programmes and the Friends' Project Officer Tracy Gray has organised over 250 events including bat and bird identification and recording, wild flower and fungi walks, archaeology and geology discovery walks and many more, led by experts in their field.

A big part of this programme includes training events in wildlife identification, survey and recording so that the FoIM can build up a picture of Ilkley’s Moor biodiversity; and also to provide the local community an opportunity to gain skills in wildlife survey and recording.

This information will be put on the Friends' Geographic Information System (GIS) then onto the Friends' website along with spatial maps of Ilkley Moor’s biodiversity. The FoIM will use this information to look at the decline and or increase in species over time based on these records and collated records from local naturalist groups. And based on this, develop new wildlife conservation projects and help inform management decisions for the moor.

The programme also includes many practical conservation events for the local community to gain an understanding of how and why the moor is managed and help to do this.

Tracy has also led over 100 volunteer working mornings and each year takes volunteers to areas of the moor which are important for wetland plants and controls bracken in these areas to preserve them.

The friends have encouraged over 2,000 people to be involved in discovering and conserving the geology, archaeology and wildlife of Ilkley Moor

Owen Wells chairman of the Friends of Ilkley Moor said: "We have organised working parties when our volunteers have helped to clear bracken, chopped down intrusive Rhododendrons, cleared brambles and gorse. Our volunteers have helped in clearing the regular cleaning of the paddling pool and have improved the drainage around the Tarn and help restore footpaths. Every week, our volunteers are at work on the moor improving amenities for the local community.

"Our first major project was the surfacing of the path to the Swastika Stone. The path along the wall from Spicey Gill had already been surfaced, but where that path left the wall to go up onto the Moor it was not surfaced at all and, although it is now difficult to remember, much of it was extremely boggy and unpleasant to walk (especially in winter). We paid for the hard core etc, and the work was undertaken by the Countryside Service assisted by volunteers. Since then we have contributed to other major paths on the Moor. So we also paid for the path to be surfaced from Willy Hall’s Spout to Spicey Gill. This now means that there is a good, graded path all the way from Rocky Valley through to the Swastika Stone.

"The Friends have helped to fund over several kilometres of restoration and resurfacing of pathways on the Moor carried out by Bradford Council Countryside Service. Surfacing a path has a dramatic effect in reducing erosion and allowing the Moor to regenerate, whilst allowing even more people to enjoy the healthy outdoor exercise.

"We have received a donation of £1,000 the Ilkley Gardners Association that has helped pay for the regular maintenance of the path from Spicy Gill to the Swastika Stone.

"We also have contributed to smaller works: to fencing, rebuilding dry stone walls, clearing ditches and culverts and flood mitigation. The work is never ending. Overall, we are the biggest and most successful of all the Friends groups in the Bradford area.

"And for the future …we shall continue our work of path restoration, and hopefully raise funds to carry out other major projects, publish our 11th Events and Learning Programme, and look forward to the next ten years being as rewarding as the last. We are currently applying for funding of £50,000 for a bracken control machine that cuts bracken on rough terrain, if this application is successful the FoIM and their volunteers we be able to tackle larger areas of bracken on Ilkley Moor."

Programmes for 2018 are now available in the Ilkley Visitor Information centre, cafes and shops in Ilkley and can also be downloaded from the website www.ilkleymoor.org