We have a new conservation opportunity with some Environment Agency funding to link into the eight sites where work has been completed with funding from National Highways as part of the Stafford Brooks project. All the sites improved for nature across Stafford are building a network of green and blue spaces through the local floodplains that both wildlife and people can enjoy. Our vision for Stafford is to have thriving habitats to aid nature’s recovery and inspire everyone to learn about what makes floodplains special.  

The planned work will be along Kingston Brook, at Kingston Pool Covert (north) and Kingston Pool Covert (south) in Stafford. The northern area is owned by a group of passionate local residents who manage this key habitat for the community. Whereas the southern area is owned and managed by Stafford Borough Council. The work in both areas will be an expansion of the conservation that has already started at Kingston Pool Covert (south) with the Stafford Brooks partnership.

Together along with other sites in Stafford, these areas form a larger network of habitats across the county town that better aids nature’s recovery by enabling the movement of plants and animals across the wider landscape.

In the Trent Valley, Staffordshire Wildlife Trust has focused on using the natural pathways of rivers and floodplains as a strategic way to enhance the nature recovery network. Floodplains have a variety of different habitats within them, including ponds, woodlands, and grasslands. These habitats are found all across our county and at Kingston Pool Covert within the woodland and along the Kingston Brook, we have the chance to do more of this good work.

Here we will use a variety of conservation methods to enhance the wetland habitat and re-profile the river within the existing woodland habitat. This particular kind of woodland is called “wet woodland,” which is a UK priority habitat and very important to protect and maintain for wildlife.

Utilising funding from the Environment Agency, we’ve created plans by observing existing features within the woodland and watercourse, and through modelling floodwaters. The proposal adds habitat features, such as ‘riffles’ to the river channel, and changes in the surrounding areas to encourage wetland habitats to form. Riffles are strategically placed gravel used to increase the height of the riverbed. The gravels then provide a space for invertebrates to shelter. These will be installed in the southern part of the woodland.

Riffles also change the speed of the water flow, with water pooling behind the riffle, then running quickly over the top and down. This helps filter water, increasing oxygen levels, and keeping it clean for wildlife.

In the northern part of the woodland, we will block ditches and to hold the spring water that runs into the brook in the woodland for longer. This will increase the amount of wet woodland habitat. Wet woodlands are host to an amazing variety of mosses, ferns, and sedges. The pools will support the early life stages for a variety of insect species, such as caddisfly, damselfly, alderflies, and more. The plant and insect species will in turn support bats, birds, and amphibians by providing a source of food. We are using nature-based solutions to encourage water to pool where it’s most convenient for wildlife, and people too.

Across the whole site there will be small amounts of tree felling, this will be to allow for the machinery access and to create features in the channel and floodplain. Before conducting any tree work, whether removing a branch or the whole tree, we assess the tree for signs bat roosts and rare wildlife. As best we can, we will use non-native felled trees to create the woody material features. Woodlands should have trees of varying ages and removing a small amount is good woodland management to encourage new growth and flowering ground plants.

We are fine-tuning plans and have a provisional date for the northern section works to start in February 2025, and they will be finished before the end of March 2025. There may be some disruption to access while we create these new habitat features, but these will be temporary, and we will minimise them as much as possible. The southern section work is planned to be completed before the end of September.  

While the work is happening and in the weeks after, the site may look to have had a dramatic change with bare earth in some areas. This is also temporary. Nature will soon do what nature does best, and different species of ground flora will begin to naturally re grow. It’s an exciting time for the biodiversity of the site with new pockets of habitat encouraging a wider variety of species to thrive in a healthier floodplain.

We are so excited to work with an enthusiastic group of residents, who are passionately invested in their local woodland, as well as continue our work with Stafford Borough Council who own the southern portion of Kingston Pool Covert. We cannot restore Staffordshire’s landscape for nature alone and thank everyone for their support.