The Great Stone Bridge Trust owns and manages a rich diversity of water meadows comprising 15 acres of open grassland, trees and shrubs and situated just south of   Mont St. Aignan Way bridge and bounded between the west bank of the River Eden, the eastern edge of Edenbridge Recreation Ground, and south of the flood bund to the north.

 

The area is designated a ‘Site of Nature Conservation Interest’ and a ‘Local Wildlife Site’, designations which are attributed to the meadows being one of the few remaining areas of ‘lowland neutral grassland’ in the country, and is of county-wide importance.

 

The area is frequented annually by, on average, 90 different species of birds, 12 different species of dragonflies and damselflies, 22 species of butterflies, as well as being home to a range of mammals such as shrews, voles, mice and bats, and also slow worms.

 

The principle upon which management of these meadows is based is that of maximising all aspects of the natural world which human beings can experience and enjoy.

 

The Trust also owns and maintains, for public enjoyment, the two river banks on either side of the River Eden between the ‘Old Stone Bridge’ and the ‘New Bridge’ which carries the bypass traffic.