Upton-on-Severn is a small town on the west bank of the River Severn (as its name suggests!), south of Worcester. The town itself is on slightly higher ground, alongside “Upton Ham”.

The Ham is a meadow which regularly floods in winter to take up excess Severn waters.

‘Ham’ is a word used in the area (Severn Ham at Tewkesbury, Hasfield Ham, Minsterworth Ham) to describe a large riverside meadow that absorbs floodwater in winter and produces a rich crop of hay in summer. Mainly because of its well-preserved hay meadow vegetation, the Ham has been declared a Site of Special Scientific Interest by Natural England.

The hay meadow naturally also supports a variety of birds that breed on hay meadows – Skylark, Corn and Reed Bunting, Redshank, and of course Curlew. It is one of the sites being studied by the Slimbridge WWT Severn and Avon Vales Curlew Project. For some years now, a group of local Curlew enthusiasts has also been watching the Curlews and cooperating with local farmers and land owners, who are equally keen to save these special birds. Upton Town Council has also cooperated in erecting signs on the Ham to remind ramblers and dog walkers to keep to the footpaths; nesting Curlews are very sensitive to disturbance. In previous years events have been held on the Ham on 21 April, to celebrate World Curlew Day.

In 2023 a Curlew’s nest with as many as eight eggs was found at Upton Ham, almost certainly the result of two females laying in the same nest; sadly, none of the eight eggs hatched. In 2024 a nest was once again found on Upton Ham; this nest too came to an unhappy end: a nest camera set up near the nest showed a Raven predating the nest, thus illustrating one of the problems faced by Curlews.

Contact was made between the Upton group and Upton-on-Severn CE Primary School, which suggested that a school morning assembly should be devoted to Curlews. So, Ellie Martin of the Worcster Curlew Group (a former pupil of the school), John Dickinson (who designs and erects signs on the Ham) and Mike Smart (of Curlew Action) all addressed an assembly in early May, pointing out the problems Curlews face, the huge natural value of the Ham (with pictures of the many other birds that occur there), and how the children, as local residents and visitors, can enjoy the natural values of the Ham. Two days later, all three accompanied two classes and their teachers on a morning walk on the Ham; it would be nice to report that the Curlews put in an appearance, but sadly, they didn’t.

It’s a great pleasure to record that the children of the school have continued to be involved with Curlews: there is an annual artwork exhibition for local schools and groups at Worcester Cathedral, the theme of which this year is: “The sky above us and the world beneath our feet”. All the children across the school were involved in creating artwork. The pictures show:
These pieces of art were displayed at Worcester cathedral from 26 May to 23 June.
Also, not in the cathedral as it is a bit too fragile, is a 1metre x 60cm 3D cardboard Curlew sitting on a nest. Reception class decorated it for display in school.