Transcribed from an audio interview at Ruskin Land
In 1973 John Iles was a mechanical engineering graduate trainee with the CEGB (Central Electricity Generating Board) working at Hams Hall Power Station just to the north of Birmingham. Walking around the substantial grounds he noticed that there were lots of birds and wildlife. Enquiring how the land was managed, he found out that the West Midlands Bird Club and the National Conservation Corps looked after it. He joined the NCC and started going out on various projects including a footpath training weekend in Northumberland, a long trip by minibus!
In 1975 John moved to Cottam Power Station near Retford and shared a house with Mike Wilde,a geography teacher and old university friend, who was teaching at Mexborough School near Rotherham.
Mike wanted to offer outdoor activities to the sixth form including conservation. John had noticed on the NCC programme a stream clearance project in the Dearne near Barnsley. He asked the NCC Regional Officer, Frank Mawby, about bringing the youngsters. Frank was initially a bit reticent about the idea, but 20 pupils got stuck in and filled two skips in one day. The pupils declined to go canoeing the next week saying they hadn’t finished the job. Their enthusiasm led to the creation of the Don and Dearne Action Group, which really took off and in due course John gave up his London job in late 1976 and took on a shop in Mexborough as a base for the Group.
John recalls “the Manpower Services Commission had just started and with lots of help from George Nash of the Tyne-Tees Conservation Volunteers I was able to create a job to run the Don and Dearne Action Group and interview myself without really ever signing on! At one point DADAG were running three projects every weekend with help from BTCV who lent us tools and a vehicle“.
After Frank moved to a new job with the Nature Conservancy Council, Mike was appointed BTCV’s Regional Officer and John joined as the administrator. They set up an office for BTCV at 39 Copley Road in Doncaster, an old butchers shop with space for tool store, a couple of long term volunteers, offices and a community facing bookshop and information resource.
John continues “one day a man from the Manpower Services Commission worked through the front door and said how many people could you possibly take. We thought 10 or 12 for South Yorkshire, but he said ‘ come on you’re a national organisation what could you do’ OK right you mean a National Community Programme agency, with 250 people which they (MSC) then helped us set up.”
This led to us buying an old school on Balby Road in Doncaster with a grant from the Countryside Commission and a loan from the council to house this team. In Yorkshire and Humberside there were MSC teams in Doncaster, Leeds, Hull, Grimsby, Northallerton with smaller units in Calderdale, York, and Scunthorpe. There was one supervisor for every 10 people employed., the average wage was no more than £60 per week. So some roles had to be very part-time to keep the average down. John set up teams in Gateshead, Belfast and so on.
Balby Road became in the 2000s TCV’s HQ before the move to the purpose-built HQ Sedum House next to Yorkshire Wildlife Trust’s Potteric Carr reserve.
John reflects “The other key person and how it all meshed together was Mike Kirby, Regional Officer from the Countryside Commission, very pro volunteering, could see the need for infrastructure, tools, minibuses, training and all the rest and at that time the Countryside Commission could give 75% grants under section 9 of the Local Government Act 1974”
Other key policy developments that supported the decision to take on Hollybush were:
Countryside Commission looked at the urban fringe and the impact on farmers with land close to populations. Tong was one of their first urban fringe projects. Bill Shaw saw that this was about getting people involved and so set up Tong Conservation Volunteers.
In 1974 new metropolitan authorities in South and West Yorkshire were created. By 76/77 they had big ideas on programmes. South Yorks had an Environment Dept – led by John Armitage – BTCV had a very good relationship with him and he was very ambitious. John A wanted to get people of South Yorks involved in future of their environment. Mike Wilde went and talked about what they were doing in South and asking if West Yorkshire would like some of it.
After Frank Mawby left, the Regional Office moved to Doncaster with Mike W as Regional Officer and John Iles as Administrator, “A 50% cut in salary but it was a job. It was amazing times, wonderful people coming through the door. Mike W was the visionary and I could write the bid application and watch the cash. It was really like riding a tiger and the young people from Mexborough School were amazing! “
“It was Mike Kirby who really initiated Hollybush Farm as he was in regular contact with Leeds City Council – Terry Exley and John Tinker… Head of Parks. The Council didn’t know what to do with the building, but John and Mike saw its potential as a volunteer centre accessible by public transport, on the edge of the city and with land . Mike Kirkby liked what John & Mike had already done eg the shop in Doncaster which was community based and volunteering was in your face. The Urban wildlife movement – led by Chris Baines – was taking off. Several strands came together. The Government wanted people off the dole, the Commission had funding and was willing to support urban action. For Mike Wilde and John Iles the focus was on helping people in the locality get involved, grow in confidence and in time find work. Many people who came through the MSC schemes went on to jobs and careers in conservation or countryside management.”
“Once Mike Kirkby had persuaded the Council that BTCV were an OK bunch to take on Hollybush Farm, the next challenge was very much with the BTCV council who had not seen anything like this before. Ian Branton, the Director, had seen what we happening in Doncaster and helped put the case to BTCV council. At the time what we were doing was considered radical – an agenda of working with unemployed people, local youngsters and school kids to get them enthused about caring for their local environment and restoring this old listed building. I think they were worried about cash flow and liabilities. Mike Kirby arranged some help from Robin Dower, an architect and Countryside Commissioner which went some way to allaying any fears. A lot of it we just got on and did. We had good and regular grants from South & West Yorkshire County Councils of £12-15K core funding. Other regions were often short of money, I would say ‘the money’s in the bank what you worrying about!’,”
“Graham, the HQ fundraiser, loved what Hollybush did, the urban kids, tackling the mucky places, our low overheads and he could easily explain this to charitable trusts”
Other helpful policy stuff
“The Countryside Agency were banking us to the hilt, but sometimes Mike Kirkby would say that a request for support was above his paygrade., go and see the Assistant Director, John Davidson.” John I chased John D around the country, got to know his PA, who would tell John I which hotel to go and invite himself to dinner and make the request.
I don’t know where the early people came from, but my hesitation was as we knocked through that door we’d have to secure the site. Hence getting the old caravan for them to stop in, so there could be a presence on site 24/7, . . . massive respect for those people. We put big banners up in effect saying “occupied”. People like Bob & Shirley, Andy, Jed Bultitude and Giles Copper were all amazing for the commitment they put in.
John Iles’ vision “ultimately we’d do ourselves out of a job, perhaps apart from some skills training, there would be thousands of little groups all caring for their greenspaces. The mobilisation of the urban population to become key advocates of the conservation message. The environment is a tool to get real engagement in the community”
When Government, led by Michael Heseltine set Groundwork North West in 1982 with John Davidson at the helm, John Iles was seconded from BTCV for an initial 2 years to be his Development Director. John stayed with Groundwork until 1995 setting up the network of Groundwork Trusts in England, Wales and Northern Ireland but that’s a whole other story!
When Government, led by Michael Heseltine set Groundwork North West in 1982 with John Davidson at the helm, John Iles was seconded from BTCV for an initial 2 years to be his Development Director. John stayed with Groundwork until 1995 setting up the network of Groundwork Trusts in England, Wales and Northern Ireland but that’s a whole other story!