The project will see local residents transform selected areas for wildlife with support from Moorlands Climate Action (MCA), Staffordshire Wildlife Trust (SWT), Keele University, OUTSIDE, Staffordshire Moorlands District Council (SMDC) and Staffordshire Council of Voluntary Youth Services (SCVYS).

The partnership will help communities develop relationships with landowners and together improve habitats across the area. This could be a roadside verge with potential to become a mini meadow, or an area of parish council greenspace which could be transformed to a wetland where wildlife thrives. SWT will provide ecological knowledge of sites, training and good practice guidance, while Keele University will provide training in surveying and data analysis.

The project is centred around community groups making their patch better for nature. Moorlands Climate Action Group were key partners in the funding bid and will help shape the project along with the other partners.

“Having campaigned for so long on this issue, we are delighted to be part of this exciting project and working alongside such committed and resourceful partners,” said Mark Johnson of Moorlands Climate Action. 

Wildlife identification workshops and hands-on training sessions will prepare communities and groups across the Moorlands for surveying species at the start, during and at the end of the project. This wildlife monitoring will allow Keele University to gather data for ground-breaking published research and the group to develop a toolkit for best practice community centred action across the UK. 

How the group's work directly benefits the climate is a fundamental part of the project. By monitoring the level of carbon stored at each site, PhD students will be able to track changes as the habitat improves during the project.

Residents in the Moorlands will also have the chance to use their imagination and creative flair. OUTSIDE, an Arts Council and lottery funded group, will run workshops to design installations to enhance their space. They will also hold a celebration event to showcase all they achieve by 2029. They will be pivotal to ensuring the wider community understand the purpose of the project and its value to their local nature.

The initial few months of the project will see partners working together to establish which areas and groups will be involved. 

Alexis Johnson, SWT Community Connector, said:

“Nature and climate are on a cliff edge; by working together through projects like Nature in Your Neighbourhood we can turn things around. It’s an exciting chance for locals to make a lasting difference for their local wildlife, while also contributing to science and playing a significant role in tackling climate change.”

Angie Turner, lecturer in Environmental Sustainability at Keele University, said:

“We’re delighted to be involved in this important community project that will transform and revive green spaces for our local communities. 

“The project is centred around community groups taking the lead on making their local patch better for nature. Importantly, decisions are evidence-based, and residents will survey habitats, species and soil characteristics at the start, during and end of the project to determine a baseline and track some of the effects that any change in habitat modification or management has on the site. By monitoring the level of carbon stored in each space, or the number of pollinators visiting a site for example, we can use that information to track how these change as the habitat improves during the project.  

“This wildlife monitoring will give us the opportunity to gather data and publish research that will provide an evidence-based and best practice approach that can be replicated and applied to similar schemes all over the UK, so the impact could reach far and wide.”

Communities can submit suggested locations to monitor and improve via the form on the project’s webpage. Alternatively, they can contact the team directly via wilderenquiries@staffs-wildlife.org.uk for more information.

Thanks to National Lottery players, Nature in your Neighbourhood led by Staffordshire Wildlife Trust has received £752,415 over five years from The National Lottery Community Fund, the largest community funder in the UK. The project will support communities in the Staffordshire Moorlands to restore green spaces that are important to them, whilst also measuring the impacts these changes have on biodiversity and climate mitigation. Project action and learning will be communicated to the wider public using art installations throughout the Moorlands. 

This funding comes from the Climate Action Fund, a £100 million commitment over 10 years from The National Lottery Community Fund to support communities across the UK to take action on climate change and involve more people in climate action. This forms part of one of the funder’s four key missions in its 2030 strategy, ‘It starts with community’ - supporting communities to be environmentally sustainable.