The road closure on Beanford Lane, Oxton, Nottinghamshire is organised by local tad campaigner Margaret Cooper with support from Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust. When first secured back in 1999, it was believed to be the first of its kind in the UK, if not the world, and has since gone on to protect thousands of toads and their offspring.
The closure is needed to protect the toads which migrate in large numbers through a wetland area either side of the lane, many of which cross using the ford across the lane. Whilst volunteers, led by Mrs Cooper had previously organised patrols to help transfer toads across the road, this became difficult to sustain when the volunteers began patrolling a second crossing in the village,
Since 1999 Mrs Cooper and Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust have shared responsibility for raising funds to cover the costs of closing the road. Each year Margaret organises a popular coffee morning to supplement the funds but this year’s event has, like countless others, been cancelled due to the Coronavirus epidemic.
