Evidence

Guest blog: Using Biodiversity Net Gain to Support Dynamic Habitats

How do you create dynamic habitat systems, that are allowed to shift, grow, and reshape themselves naturally, within the rules of Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG)? BNG requires that developers leave nature in a measurably better state either on site and …

Defining Success for Wildlife: What Does "Thriving" Really Mean?

Pine Marten. Credit: Robert Cruikshanks

How do we know when a species is truly thriving, rather than just surviving? This is the question Natural England has been working to answer. We've now published new definitions that set out exactly what success looks like for four …

ReSCUE takes flight: Survey campaign to address gaps in seabird flight height data.

Wind turbines in the North Sea. Credit: Andrew Harwood

By Rachel Mewes – Marine Ornithology Specialist and ReSCUE Project Support, Eddie Cole – ReSCUE Project Lead and Andrew Harwood – Senior Marine Ornithology Specialist and ReSCUE Technical Lead Offshore wind expansion is critical to the UK government’s ambitions to …

Balancing Nature and Development: The Humber Estuary Protected Site Strategy Pilot 

By Katharine Carson, Senior Officer, Sustainable Development, Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire Area Team When you think of the Humber Estuary, you might picture big stretches of mudflats full of wading birds like curlew and lapwing. Or maybe you think of the busy docks and …

Natural England’s Chief Scientist reflects on the Science, Evidence and Analysis for nature recovery

By Professor Sallie Bailey, FICFOR, BES On 4 December, the Royal Armouries in Leeds hosted some leading voices in nature recovery. Thought leaders and innovators from environmental NGOs, academia, finance, infrastructure and local government joined Natural England at our Science, …

Rethinking how we approach the design of reservoirs

Posted by: , Posted on: - Categories: Climate change, Development, Evidence, Green Infrastructure, Growth, Landscape, Natural England
Photo of Wimbleball Lake with landscape scenery around

By Jacqui Jobbins, Landscape Senior Specialist, Natural England As our climate changes and demand for water grows, water companies across the country are planning new reservoirs and expanding existing ones. But these projects aren’t just about storing water – they’re …

From local to national and back again: place-based support for citizen science

An illustrated citizen science brainstorming workshop with members of the public in Bristol by the Natural History Consortium

By Andy Jefferies, Senior Officer for Citizen Science One challenge for the citizen science sector is how to bridge the gap between evidence and experiences which are meaningful at a local scale, and those which are meaningful at a national …

More than the sum of our parts: professionals and citizen scientists working together to transform evidence collection

We’re in the middle of a step change for national-scale environmental evidence in England. In recent years, the Natural Capital and Ecosystem Assessment (NCEA) programme has allowed us to create and upgrade maps and data products like the England Peat …

A Landmark Year for England’s Fungi

From international pledges to pioneering reintroduction projects, it’s been an exciting year for England’s fungi. Natural England Mycologist, Matt Wainhouse, reflects on remarkable year for fungal conservation. Fungi on the global agenda Fungi have often missed out in the global …

Natural England’s response to Defra’s consultation on heather and grass burning

Posted by: , Posted on: - Categories: Biodiversity, Evidence, Natural England, Nature, Peat, Wildlife
Moor House - Upper Teesdale National Nature Reserve. Copyright: Dave Glaves

By John Holmes, Director of Strategy On 5 September, Defra announced strengthened legislation on burning on peat.  The new legislation came into force this week, with the new burning season commencing on Wednesday.  We welcome the strengthened legislation which will …