The Stewardship Plan is an initiative by Natural England with the aim of improving biodiversity. They encourage all land owners to look at managing land in away that encourages habitat protection or creation. For example, planting trees or hedgerows, creating or managing meadows, grazing meadows rather than cutting – this helps spread seed around the site and encourages nesting birds. RMBC are working with Natural England for 10 years. The standards are set by Natural England and the fencing that has been erected recently at Ulley Country Park is to their specification.
The Stewardship Plan will improve biodiversity and gives us grant funding, that comes with it, which will enable us to put bird boxes, bat boxes, graze cattle, lay the hedges etc. It should make the park feel much more like a nature reserve and also make it much better to see wildlife. It has also made Ulley the centre of the environmental education programme.
It is an exciting project and one we would welcome any help with, be it monitoring wildlife flora and fauna or keeping an eye on the cattle. Hopefully even photographers and artists will like it too. The involvement of schools groups give us the chance to educate the next generation so that they too will love and cherish their countryside.
Any comments will be welcome by the Park Management.