Cotswold Water Park - Location

Location

At 40 square miles the Cotswold Water Park is approximately the same size as the Island of Jersey. It is that part of the Upper Thames catchment in North Wiltshire & South Gloucestershire which has been subjected to over 50 years of sand and gravel extraction. For ease of navigation, the Cotswold Water Park is split into three areas. The Western section encompasses the villages of South Cerney, Cerney Wick, Ashton Keynes, Somerford Keynes, Poole Keynes, Siddington, Oaksey, Minety and Leigh; and comprises the uppermost reaches of the River Thames, as well as its tributaries including The River Churn, Swill Brook and Cerney Wick Brook. The Central section encompasses Driffield, Ampney St Peter, Poulton, Down Ampney, Meysey Hampton, Cricklade, Latton & Marston Meysey; and features further Thames tributaries such as the Ampney Brook. The Eastern section copmprises Fairford, Kempsford, Lechlade, Buscot, Inglesham and Castle Eaton; and features additional Thames tributaries including the River Coln and River Leach. Lechlade in the Eastern section marks the start of the navigable River Thames. The Cotswold Water Park area sits low in an historic river valley and as such is exposed to fluctuations in ground water levels. Much of the farmland in this area is made up of flood meadows which act as flood alleviation from the River Thames. Many of the 151 lakes are connected by underground culverts, allowing transfer of water between them. In addition to this, transfer takes place through ground water feeds and via a myriad of ditches and streams. Restoration schemes for many of the active mineral workings are taking into account the vital function of these flood water storage areas, as well as creating important habitat for a number of Local and UK Biodiversity Action Plan species (LBAP and UKBAP).