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Wiltshire Geology Group

Who are we?

Wiltshire Geology Group was established in the early 1980's. We are a member of the Geology Trusts, a nation-wide, County based organisation committed to promoting and protecting geological diversity in both historic and new sites of geological interest.

We are affiliated to the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust, who provide office, conference and exhibition space at their premises in Devizes, Wiltshire. We also work closely with the Wiltshire Heritage Museum at Devizes.

What do we do?

The Wiltshire Geology Group aims to raise public awareness of Earth Sciences and draw people's attention to the way the landscape and the towns and villages within it are influenced by the underlying geology - Wiltshire's landscape is inextricably bound up with the rocks beneath the surface. This is in addition to its geoconservation role, which involves keeping an eye on local rock exposures - especially the 23 Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and 60 Local Geological Sites (LGS), formerly known as Regionally Important Geological Sites (RIGS). Unfortunately many important exposures of local rock in old quarries are being lost as a result of human activities and also to natural processes, as the rock weathers and vegetation takes over. Our work includes site surveys, maintenance of rock exposures, geological outings and talks.

When funding is secured, we hope to add to the series of trail-guides covering the most interesting areas of Wiltshire's geology and also to raise awareness of the importance of local building stones by producing a public data-base of building stone sources.