Our highlights

We are working with experts and volunteers to propagate rare species, such as Tower Mustard and Copse Bindweed. These are both Section 41 Species of Principle Importance.

Lesnes Abbey Woods is becoming a key location for Froglife’s Blue Chain project, and a Flagship Site for the Bumblebee Conservation Trusts project looking to conserve rare species, including both the Shrill and Brown Banded Carder Bee.

We are working with London Metropolitan University and the Royal Academy Copenhagen in an Ecological Citizens Network funded project. Connecting woodland management, in-situ use of harvested timber, and amenity access to woodland, the project will create a template for ecological citizenship in other community woodlands.

We are delivering thousands of hours of practical nature conservation with volunteers and Friends Groups.

We are making use of eDNA sampling to record species presence as part of the GenePools project.

We received lottery funding to deliver Field Recorder Days and improve knowledge of the species present at Lesnes Abbey Woods.

Our challenges

Central government policy is to accelerate housebuilding and deliver 1.5m homes by 2030. Accordingly, house-building, and associated infrastructure, is expected to increase significantly throughout London. The delivery of additional development sites, has the potential to negatively impact SINCs, if they are located within or in close proximity to SINCs.

Our increased population growth is adding pressure upon publicly accessible Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation, with no increase in resources to manage these sites. The physical pressure of access and associated impacts can result in degradation of sensitive habitats and/or constrain the ability to implement appropriate management.

We are challenged by our limited capacity and resources to record the effectiveness of our biodiversity management.

We are seeing increased pests and diseases affecting native species, and we are likely to see an increasing threat of invasive non-native species (INNS) becoming established due to climate change.

We are noticing the negative effect of climate change upon habitats and species. A wide range of wildlife, habitats and ecosystems are sensitive to the changes and impacts brought about climate change. This can have a significant effect on the ability for some existing species to feed, breed, disperse or migrate, especially if they occur in small, isolated habitats.