6.10.2020

‘So you want to plant more trees?’ – A guide to commissioning and managing tree planting

The benefits of trees in urban areas are now widely recognised, and across the UK many councils and businesses are keen to increase the number of trees in their neighbourhoods.
Streets, parks and public spaces with healthy trees can attract people and investment, as well as helping to cool urban areas in the summer and contributing to other climate change adaptation and mitigation objectives. However, without careful consideration, it is po...

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3.10.2019

Parks face disproportionate cuts, says research

Funding for neighbourhood services such as parks and open spaces fell by 27% in England, Wales and Scotland over a nine-year period (2009/10-2017/18), according to research by the Association for Public Service Excellence (APSE). Though a substantial reduction in local government spending has been unavoidable, the report says, the austerity faced by neighbourhood services has been too severe and isn’t proportionate to overall local government ...

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3.10.2019

Birmingham’s parks and green spaces valued at £11bn

Parks and green spaces managed by Birmingham City Council have been valued at £11bn over a 25-year period, with research showing that each pound invested returns over £24 to the local area. Set out in an academic study led by the council, the research outlined the various benefits of using green infrastructure, finding that that the 4,700ha of parks and green spaces store more than 2.1m tonnes of CO2 and add more than 3,3000 Quality Adjusted L...

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3.10.2019

Calming sounds of nature improve wellbeing, study says

Woodland sounds can improve people’s wellbeing, reducing feelings of anxiety by over a fifth, according to a study commissioned by the National Trust. Using measurements of elapsed time between listening to audio stimuli and subsequentbehavioural responses, those immersed in woodland sounds reported a 30% increase in feelings of relaxation and an almost 25% reduction in feelings of stress. For more details, click here.

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3.10.2019

25 YEP progress too slow, says NCC

The Natural Capital Committee (NCC) has warned that the government’s progress on its 25 Year Environment Plan is insufficient, claiming that there is little evidence of progress since the document was published last year. This failure, the NCC claims, is due to the lack of a natural capital assets baseline against which to measure progress, an omission the organisation claims is ‘especially disappointing’ given that eight years have passed sin...

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3.10.2019

Major landscapes in need of reform

Major landscapes in need of reform
England needs a ‘National Landscape Service’ to act as a unified body for national parks and AONBs, according to an independent review led by the writer Julian Glover. With the country facing new challenges such as climate change, biodiversity loss and a changing urban society, the model for managing important landscapes much evolve, the report says, with recommendations including changes in financing and a 1,...

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