Text 1: Keeping a record of the marsh, by Bethan Lowe

An original contemporary online feature.

At the edge of Meriton, a patch of marsh is being restored after years of neglect. On the first Saturday of each month, volunteers record how the site is changing. Fifteen-year-old Asha joined last spring, expecting to spend most of her time planting reeds. Instead, coordinator Helen gave her a notebook and asked her to mark the water level against a post beside the path.

‘At first I wrote down whatever I could see,’ Asha says. ‘Helen showed me that the date and the exact place matter just as much as the number.’ The group also walks a fixed route to note where new plants have appeared. Asha keeps a pocket guide with her, but she has learned not to guess when she cannot identify something; she leaves a blank for Helen to check later.

The volunteers compare each month’s notes with earlier records. Asha noticed that one reading had been taken after heavy rain, so she added that detail rather than treating it as an ordinary month. Now she looks after the group’s weekly water-level log herself. If a reading changes sharply, she sends it to Helen, who decides whether the group should visit the site. ‘I understand the record better now,’ Asha says. ‘I know what I can enter, and what I need to ask about.’

Text 2: Questions worth asking, by Marcus Bell

An original contemporary newspaper feature.

When the local library began collecting memories of the old market, sixteen-year-old Lewis volunteered to help. His first contribution was not an interview but a list of questions for retired shopkeeper Mrs Parry. The librarian crossed out several that could be answered with yes or no. Lewis went away and rewrote them so that Mrs Parry could describe what she remembered.

At their first meeting, Lewis had brought a recorder but had not checked its battery. It stopped before Mrs Parry had finished describing the market’s last Saturday. They arranged another visit. This time Lewis tested the recorder, explained how the conversation would be used and let his guest take a break whenever she wanted.

Lewis now listens back to the recordings and types selected passages for the library’s archive. He has become good at noticing when a story raises a question he had not planned to ask. Next month he is expected to interview a former market porter on his own. The librarian will help him plan beforehand, but will not be in the room. Lewis says he is looking forward to it, though he has asked to practise the opening questions once more.