LOCAL NATURE RECOVERY STRATEGY

Cambridgeshire and Peterborough is one of the most nature-depleted areas in England. We want to change that by creating a world-class place where nature and people flourish together.

OUR STRATEGY

The Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS) programme is a national Government initiative designed to set priorities for nature recovery across England, responding to the national biodiversity decline. Natural Cambridgeshire has been asked by the County Council to support the delivery of an LNRS for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, the area already having adopted a ‘Doubling Nature’ ambition.

With your help, together we can create a nature-rich future for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.

January 2023

We started early-on engagement with key stakeholders.

March 2023

We established project management principles and a strong governance structure, timelines, and framework.

April 2023

We began to understand the baseline data and released statutory regulation and guidance.

May 2023

Collaboration workshop occurred with partners and stakeholders to explore the unpinning principles that will support the development of the LNRS for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.

August 2023

We started the procurement process of authors, editors, GIS support and stakeholder engagement.

October 2023

Land Use Consultants and Natural Capital Solutions were awarded contracts for the authorship and GIS support elements of the LNRS.

November 2023

We developed our stakeholder engagement plan. Our data and evidence, strategy writing, and stakeholder engagement workstreams commenced.

January 2024

Engagement with local experts, farmers and landowners, communities and interest groups commenced.

February 2024

Natural Capital Solutions completed the updating of baseline habitat mapping and began to use this to develop the maps.

March 2024

Species recovery workstream commenced and developed in collaboration with CPERC.

April 2024

Outputs from stakeholder engagement workstream, and desk-based research completed by Land Use Consultants, were used to create the habitat priorities longlist.

May 2024

The prioritisation process started, to agree the habitat priorities and actions shortlist.

June 2024

Prioritisation workshop took place to shortlist priorities and assign actions. A survey took place to test priorities with wider stakeholders.

August 2024

Ecologist group set up to review the habitat priorities and actions list, and to start developing the methodology for the mapping of the measures.

September 2024

Priorities and actions tested and further refined with key stakeholders.

October 2024

Development of mapping outputs begins.

December 2024

A mapping workshop took place to review the methodology and first drafts of the mapping outputs.

February - May 2025

Final amendments made to the strategy prior to consultation.

June 2025

Pre-consultation approval process commenced.

July - September 2025

Draft Local Nature Recovery Strategy open for consultation 18 July – 11 September

October 2025

Amendments made to the draft post consultation.

November 2025

Pre-publication approval process commenced.

December 2025

Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS) published.

The State of Nature

A report to assess the state of the UK’s wildlife has been produced through a collaboration of over 60 partners, from conservation NGOs; research institutes, and statuatory nature conservation bodies.

Read report

We are pleased to announce that the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS) is now published and the online version of the strategy is available to download here.

Thank you to everyone past and present who has helped contribute to the strategy.

Learn more about ongoing projects, documented case studies, and publications by visiting the LNRS Projects page

 

Projects

News

LNRS Consultation Findings

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Thanks to everyone who was able to contribute their views on the draft Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Local Nature Recovery Strategy earlier this year. We have…

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A Celebration of LNRS

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Tony Juniper, Chair of Natural England, explains how Local Nature Recovery Strategies can play a role in halting the decline in biodiversity. He emphasises how…

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Presentation on LNRS Progress

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Pamela Abbott, Director of Natural Cambridgeshire, gave a talk at the Natural Cambridgeshire Partnership Forum on 11 December 2024 to update how the Cambridgeshire and…

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Photo Competition

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Update: The photo competition is now closed, thank you so much to everyone that took part! The winner will be announced in our next newsletter.…

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If you would like to receive regular updates about the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Local Nature Recovery Strategy please subscribe to the quarterly newsletter.

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Did you know?

River Mel

The River Mel is a small chalk stream which supports brown trout (in its lower reaches) and water voles, but has become degraded in recent years.

The Fens Economy

The whole food chain, from farm to fork, employs 80,000 people – equivalent to the population of Peterborough – and generates more than £3 billion a year for the Fens’ economy.

Wicken Fen

We’ve seen astonishing success at the Kingfisher bridge. Once carrot fields it has now been turned into habitat supporting bitterns.

Watercourse Ecology

Natural materials such as closed boards and wooden poles for bank repair are being used as opposed to sheet piling which is detrimental to the watercourse ecology.

The Fens

Although it covers less than 4 per cent of England’s farmed area, the Fens produces more than 7 per cent of England’s total agricultural production, worth a staggering £1.23 billion.

River Mel

The riverbed now rises and falls, helping the river flow at different rates, increasing the range of habitats.

The Fens

More than 13,000 different species of flora and fauna and found in the Fens.

Hoffer Brook

Improved maintenance regimes have improved wild trout habitats in the Hoffer Brook and the return of kingfishers at Bourn Brook.

Melbourn

Under the supervision of the Wild Trout Trust in Melbourn, the riverbed has been restored with careful placement of gravel and chalk.

Brampton Woods

Hazel dormice were reintroduced at Brampton Wood 30 years ago – the first ever UK reintroduction – and the population thrives to this day.

River Mel

Using trout native to the Mel meant genetic traits were retained and the fish were already in-tune with their river.

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