West Northants Council: Local Nature Recovery Strategy
Roy Hawkesford from Hackleton reports on a Webinar for parish councillors, organised by Ruth Rolls, WNC's Nature Recovery Strategy Officer (Environment, Countryside & Parks, Assets & Environment.
The purpose of the meeting was to outline the Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS) which will go out for consultation soon1.
Ruth describes the aims of the webinar thus:
This webinar is the final opportunity to collectively learn about the development of the Local Nature Recovery Strategy in West Northamptonshire before the strategy is finalised and goes to public consultation early in 2025. The strategy is being drafted now. It is built on successful engagement carried out between March and July that has produced the priorities (desired outcomes) and potential measures (suggested actions).
Nene Rivers Trust will also explore how the council and LNRS partners can support, help and enable Parish Councils and community needs in their nature recovery and wildlife goals. They will talk through an existing toolkit currently used in the Rockingham Forest area, called the Parish Nature Recovery Guide. They’ll explore how this toolkit or similar support might be worth working up in West Northamptonshire, and whether it should link to other Parish Council work areas like Neighbourhood Planning.
The webinar was recorded for those unable to attend2.
The presentation on the Nene Rivers Trust (sophie@neneriverstrust.org) was a good introduction to what is possible. It is based in Rockingham Forest. The Parish Nature Recovery Guide3 is a really good introduction to what can be achieved – and how.
The organisers of the webinar are very keen to engage with PCs to help develop strategies to combat the loss of nature in our area.