Digging In: Cappagh Browne Joins Forces with The Friends of Combe Valley

Working alongside the Friends of Combe Valley — a dedicated group of local volunteers — our team tackled several hands-on projects designed to enhance access, usability, and sustainability across the site. With the help of a mini excavator supplied by Cappagh Browne, one of the key tasks was installing eco-friendly grass matting around the picnic benches and outdoor education area. The matting, made from 75% recycled natural rubber, provides a durable, low-impact surface that allows grass to grow through while standing up to year-round foot traffic.

Elsewhere, volunteers worked to clear overgrown areas by cutting back invasive Alexander plants that were crowding out a newly planted native hedge and limiting accessibility. The team also helped prepare the ground for a new footpath beside the car park — an important safety improvement for school groups and families visiting the garden. When complete, this route will offer a safer alternative to walking directly through the car park.

The Combe Valley community garden is part of a wider initiative led by the Combe Valley Countryside Park CIC and supported by Hastings Borough Council and Groundwork South. Over the years, the Friends group has transformed the area through tree and hedge planting, creating wildflower meadows, and working from their base at the Discovery Centre — complete with murals painted by local artists. Their efforts are supported entirely through fund raising, grants and volunteer time.

Our involvement at the site forms part of a shared belief in practical, sustainable action — combining civil engineering expertise with local knowledge to help deliver meaningful change. The Friends group welcomed the support, noting that having access to plant and skilled volunteers dramatically increased their capacity to carry out large-scale work in a short time.

It was a day filled with teamwork, shared purpose, and steady hands — and a clear reminder of the impact that industry can have when it gets involved at ground level.