Fly-tipping forces nature reserve near Rushden to close car park

Those who enjoy walking around a nature reserve near Rushden will soon no longer be able to park there because of repeated fly-tipping incidents.

The car park at Ditchford Lakes and Meadows, just off the road known locally as Ditchford Lane, will be closed at the start of October.

The site is managed by the Wildlife Trust but has been blighted by fly-tipping and littering, leaving the trust facing bills to clean up the waste.

And they say the cost of doing so is not sustainable, meaning they have taken the 'hard decision' to shut the car park for good.

A spokesman said: "We have taken the hard decision to close the car park with effect from the start of October 2021.

"It has suffered from repeated fly-tipping and littering over recent years and this has meant large amounts of time and money have been spent on the resulting clean-ups, which is not sustainable.

"We understand this will be disappointing to the small number of legitimate car park users.

"Free car parking (up to five hours) is available at Rushden Lakes shopping complex, from where it is a 10 minute walk into Ditchford Lakes & Meadows nature reserve."

The 31.1ha Ditchford Lakes and Meadows site is part of the Upper Nene Valley Special Protection Area.

Otters are frequent visitors and grass snakes are often seen basking in the sun during warm mornings.