Latest News
from the
Cotswolds National Landscape team
Autumn and Winter 2023
Welcome to a bumper round up from the Cotswolds National Landscape team. 2023 has been a busy year, right across the team: read on for a handful of highlights.
National rebrand
We’re delighted to announce that all the English and Welsh AONBs changed their names to National Landscapes on 22nd November 2023.
This is a significant milestone for the UK, and the next step in fully realising the National Landscapes’ vision to be the leading exemplars of how thriving, diverse communities can work with and for nature in the UK: restoring ecosystems, providing food, storing carbon to mitigate the effects of climate change, safeguarding against drought and flooding, whilst also nurturing people’s health and wellbeing. The new brand underscores our collective commitment to redoubling efforts and engaging with a wider audience.
For us in the Cotswolds, as we’ve been using the name Cotswolds National Landscape since 2020, the name change won’t really affect us day-to-day – but we have adopted the new logo, and other elements in line with the national rebrand.
We will be implementing the brand under a minimal waste principle – so for a while, you may see historic versions of the logo in the Cotswolds in various guises – please embrace this as a lovely visual reminder of our history, our staying power, and our ability to change and adapt!
FiPL programme
The Farming in Protected Landscapes programme has been extended to March 2025. So far, in the Cotswolds, over 100 projects have been approved to the tune of over £2.5m and with a value of over £4.3m. This is a huge investment in the Cotswolds, and projects have ranged across all four funding themes: nature, climate, people and place. If you have an idea, or have been thinking about applying for funding, please get in touch – the sooner you speak to the team about a potential project, the better.
Glorious Cotswold Grasslands
Our GCG team members have had a super year, again. Their programme of work spans all four seasons, from preparing the ground in winter through to sowing seeds, harvesting, drying, and seed collection in the summer. A handful of highlights from this year include:
- Over 1,200 volunteer-hours helping with botanical surveys, seed harvesting and habitat management.
- An impressive total of 371 different plant species recorded in our donor and recipient meadows since we began this work.
- By working in partnership with the Floodplain Meadows Partnership, North-east Farm Cluster Group and FWAG we have carried out botanical assessments along the Windrush from Stow to Burford to map the rare MG4 floodplain meadow community, and we are working with landowners to prioritise restoration of this important habitat.
- With funding from the Species Recovery Fund, we have been working with Plantlife to help the endangered pasque flower in the Cotswolds. Over 27,000 seeds were collected this summer, then sent to the Kew Gardens Millennium Seed Bank for safe keeping. In the autumn, 3,600 seeds were sown on two carefully prepared sites to establish new populations of this wonderful plant.
Everyone’s Evenlode
The Everyone’s Evenlode team has celebrated a very busy year in 2023. Working with primary and secondary school students, PGCE students, and community groups, they have helped thousands of people engage with the Evenlode river and its catchment. Noteworthy highlights include:
- A very pro-active group of Duke of Edinburgh students who have worked on multiple projects through the year.
- MP Caroline Lucas attending a visit at FarmED with Chipping Norton sixth form students.
- Enstone Primary School’s eco-warrior group – the first citizen science school in our catchment, taking part in water quality monitoring on the Glyme.
- The Earth Day event in Charlbury was a multigenerational event, with over 250 participants, taking part in family-friendly activities and citizen science education.
- An organised river walk and public meeting in Moreton-in-Marsh, resulting in a citizen science-based community group ‘Riverlution Evenlode’ with 20 active participants and over 50 followers!
- The development of an ‘Evenlode River Community’, designed to help catchment communities expand on citizen science opportunities and funding for positive action.
Bathscape
The access element of the Bathscape project, which the CNL team has been delivering, concluded in summer 2023. The intention for Bathscape was always for the city and surrounding area to be recognised as one of the most complete landscape cities in the world, where the people in the city were more connected with the beautiful rural landscape around them. Access work has included:
- Assessing, waymarking and making physical improvements to the Circuit of Bath route as well as creating walking guides for the route.
- Devising 18 self-guided walking routes, in consultation with a diverse range of user groups.
- Engaging and training volunteers who will maintain the key routes in the future.
- Leading guided walks for a diverse range of audiences.
Removing Barriers
Following the successful first year of Defra’s Removing Barriers funding, we received great news in autumn 2023 of a further £910k of funding available across all National Landscapes for Year 2 of Removing Barriers. We received an allocation of £53,908. We focused on two projects:
- ‘Opening gateways into our ancient past’ is supporting Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust as they continue to improve access at Greystones Farm, and work to create new learning spaces for those with limited mobility.
- ‘Unlocking Potential’ – the purchase of an all-terrain vehicle with seating for five volunteers – to support the work of the Cotswold Voluntary Wardens in the north of the Cotswolds National Landscape, allowing them to access sites more easily, carry tools closer to work sites, and offer transport to those volunteers who may not have access to a car to reach more remote sites.
New team members
We welcomed a number of new team members throughout 2023. Olivia Blackwell as Farming Engagement Officer, Ellie Robinson as FiPL Admin Support, Magda Glanowska as Head of Finance; Lorna Baggett as GCG Programme Officer, Nina Stubbington as Grants and Access Officer, and Jonathan Rogers as Management Accountant.
We were very pleased to complete another team volunteering day this autumn too – this time helping with habitat management and scrub clearance at Rodborough Common.
Advice and guidance
Part of our work as an organisation is to offer advice and guidance relating to the Cotswolds. These are available on our website, and are a helpful reference for a wide range of queries. View published advice and guidance, including our recent position statements, below:
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| Cotswolds National Landscape Cotswold Business Centre 2 A P Ellis Road, Upper Rissington Gloucestershire GL54 2QB info@cotswolds-nl.org.ukThe Cotswolds National Landscape is a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, managed and looked after by a small team working in partnership with many other like-minded organisations and individuals. You are signed up to the Cotswolds National Landscape mailing listPreferences | Unsubscribe |
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