Event Report: The Living Brue Day 2026
The Living Brue Day, held on Saturday, 28th March 2026, at the Glastonbury Town Hall, was a resounding success.
This pioneering event, sponsored by the Glastonbury Town Council, brought the community together for a full day of inspiration, education, and celebration of the River Brue.
A Morning of Vision and Voices
The day began with a beautiful River Blessing by Liz Cruse, followed by a warm welcome from Mayor Cllr. Dr. Michael White. Indra Donfrancesco was the MC for the day.
- Keynote Insights: Sarah Dyke MP delivered a powerful opening address about tackling critical issues like sewage dumping, flooding, sustainable farming and our relationship with the river in more broader terms. Sarah also showcased and praised the efforts of the Somerset Eel Recovery Project (SERP) and informed the audience of exciting news about eel recovery targeted for the Brue River.
- Deep Dives: Morning sessions featured experts and representatives from the Somerset Wildlife Trust, Surfers Against Sewage, Brue CREW, Reimagining the Levels and Catchment Sensitive Farming, focusing on river health and sensitive farming practices. A presentation was also delivered by Dave Sawtell who is part of the group that organised the event.
The Atrium: History, Myth, and Science
Throughout the day, the Atrium served as a hub for other talks
- Bruce Garrard explored the rich history of the River Brue.
- Yuri Leich shared the sacred myths of the “Well Maidens.”
- Dr. Bel Deering from the Somerset Rivers Authority provided practical guides on moving “From Rain to Resilience.”
- SERP double act Andrew Kerr and Vanessa Becker-Hughes talked about the European Eel on a Global, European and UK level, followed by its most recent work around the Brue. Covering the CNN film, Fish tanks in Schools, Straw ropes lobbying and much more…
- A pollution testing workshop by BrueCrew
- Jamie Mochrie from the Green Party on Farming land use and water quality.
- Reimagining the Levels talk on Tree planting on the Levels.
Afternoon Solutions & Innovations
The energy continued into the afternoon with a focus on actionable “Natural Solutions”:
- Dan Britton Spoke about his water remediation plans at Plotgate and invited people to get involved.
- David Banwell spoke about Farming and Habitat Management from his lifetime of farming in and around Wedmore
- New Launch: In a major highlight, Ewan Jones (Brue CREW) and Vanessa Becker-Hughes (SERP) officially launched the NEW River Brue Nature Mapping Project, supported by a stunning aerial film by Gabriel Avalon.
Keynote speaker Barrister Paul Powlesland delivered a stirring presentation on pioneering river guardianship, followed by an engaging Q&A
Community & Connection
Beyond the talks, the hall was alive with activity:
- Exhibitors: Stands featured local groups like BrueCrew and Reimagining the Levels and Wessex Water joined us too.
- Hands-on Craft: Julia Bedford led a rush weaving drop in blending traditional skills with river awareness, highlighting the disconnect.
- The Riverbank Cafe: Everyone that came enjoyed refreshments provided by volunteers that helped to directly fund future environmental projects.
The event concluded with a strong sense of River Guardianship, leaving us empowered to protect the Brue’s ecology, history, and it’s future. The event organisers very much hope to run further events in the future. Thanks to Lil Sawtell for the photography montage – a collection of photographs from ‘source to sea’ of our river Brue, it was enjoyed by many.