Local Nature Recovery Strategy updates for the North

CLA advice team blogs on the latest developments regarding the county-by-county scheme. This page will be updated monthly.

Local Nature Recovery Strategies (LNRSs) are currently in development across England.

As the autumn approaches, it feels like a good time to provide members with a further update on the Local Nature Recovery Strategy work that has been going on across the North.

If you’re not fully up to speed on the LNRS then here is a link to a webinar we held for members in July 2023. In brief, Local Nature Recovery Strategies (LNRSs) are currently in development across England on a county-by-county basis and are intended to identify opportunities for nature restoration which will be made available to planners and promoters on both paper and plans.

Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) will also contribute towards halting the decline in nature through the creation of new nature friendly habitats and to this end, land mapped within an LNRS will benefit from a more lucrative multiplier meaning landowners can deliver more BNG units on a lesser area.

The CLA has been engaging with local authorities on the LNRS in each county since last year. As well as occasionally attending stakeholder meetings and workshops to make sure that landowner viewpoints are represented, we have also shared details via our enews and social media on stakeholder engagement sessions/workshops being held in each county.

These events mainly took place in the first half of the year and it would be fair to say that some counties were more successful at getting farmers/landowners in the room than others.

The reason for publishing this blog now, is to alert members to the fact that many county LNRS teams are getting ready to consult on their proposed nature recovery strategy, having now drafted and refined this following feedback from the engagement sessions/workshops which took place earlier this year.

This may therefore be your last chance to input on the LNRS in your county before it gets adopted, and so we would encourage all members with land to at least take a look at (and ideally respond to) any LNRS consultations that apply. Bearing in mind if you farm across a county border there may be more than one strategy you need to keep an eye on.

You may find your holding is currently being considered as an area of importance for nature recovery, and if you disagree with this, or would rather your holding were excluded from the plans, you need to let the LNRS team in your area know sooner rather than later.

Cumbria - The Cumbria LNRS will show where actions to recover nature would be most effective. There is no requirement that any specific proposed action must be carried out; instead, they are intended to guide where the public, private and voluntary sectors focus their nature recovery efforts for greater collective impact. Throughout the summer the team have produced a set of DRAFT Cumbria LNRS Measures - which will be the practical actions needed to meet the priorities for nature in the county.

Durham – The County Durham LNRS will be used to guide and focus funding from a variety of sources, including the government's Biodiversity Net Gain policy, Environmental Land Management schemes (ELM), alongside other potential cross-sector and private funding opportunities such as those for woodland creation, natural flood management, and species projects. They are planning on publishing their draft Local Nature Recovery Strategy Map and Statement of Biodiversity Priorities in November 2024, when members will have another opportunity to comment on it before it's finalised and sent for agreement. The authority hopes to publish the finalised strategy in the Spring 2025.

Liverpool City Region – Liverpool City Region LNRS' first phase of mapping has been completed and the map identifies “areas of particular importance for biodiversity” as defined by Defra. A set of biodiversity priorities(strategic objectives) have been established, incorporating technical evidence, stakeholder input and the public’s views. Phase two of mapping is underway and will identify areas where there are opportunities for nature recovery interventions.

North Yorkshire - The North Yorkshire LNRS workshop events for land managers and farmers across the county was held in February 2024 to understand their views on how nature can be encouraged alongside their businesses. Through the summer they focused on the preparation of the draft version of the Local Nature Recovery Strategy.

This has been reviewed by our Supporting Authorities (Natural England, City of York Council, Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority and North York Moors National Park Authority) over the summer, ahead of public consultation on the draft strategy later in the year.

Lancashire - The Lancashire LNRS have completed the Map – Area Throughout the Spring there was engagement with the habitat and species specialists and land managers to understand and describe the most important habitats and species in Lancashire and what the opportunities for recovery might be.

Throughout the summer they collaboratively agreed on the priorities and potential measures/practical actions for nature recovery in Lancashire and these will inform the Local Habitat Map and the Statement of Biodiversity Priorities. They aim for the draft strategy to go out for public consultation for comment and feedback on this in the first quarter of 2025.

North of Tyne - North of Tyne LNRS had completed all their surveys by the end of October. Over the winter 2024-2025 we will prepare a draft of the N of Tyne LNRS. From March 2025 they will start the formal consultation of the draft, as it is a statutory document. In June 2025 they consider all the feedback from the formal consultation and we will seek approval of a final LNRS.

Hull and East Yorkshire - The Hull and East Riding LNRS have identified their priorities for the area and the current habitats have been mapped. They are now seeking to build more of an understanding on how and where they should improve habitats. They are continuing to host webinars for engagement purposes to help them understand how the strategy can be implemented and become a facilitator for landowners to benefit from an additional source of income.

One of their last engagement webinars was held on Wednesday 23 October and we believe there may well be other opportunities before the LNRS is published in March 2025.

Tees Valley - The Tees Valley LNRS are currently developing a plan for preparing the Tees Valley LNRS strategy, including governance arrangements and how they will engage with stakeholders throughout the process. contact details - lnrs@teesvalley-ca.goc.uk. According to the Tees Valley Nature Partnership, the Tees Valley aims to release their draft LNRS strategy in September 2024, have launched their public consultation by December 2024 and published the document by March 2025.

West Yorkshire - The West Yorkshire Local Nature Recovery Strategy is one of 48 spatial mapping and planning tools. Together, these will cover the whole of England and help to create a Nature Recovery Network of wildlife-rich places. This has been set out in the Environment Act 2021.

The aim is to expand, improve and connect these places across our towns, cities, countryside and coast. This will help them to deal with three of the biggest challenges they face today: biodiversity loss, climate change and wellbeing. The West Yorkshire Local Nature Recovery Strategy will help to target action to create, restore and enhance nature. The Government’s overall ambition is that Local Nature Recovery Strategies will be a powerful new tool that will help the public, private and voluntary sectors work more effectively together for nature’s recovery. More information on their website.

South Tyneside - South Tyneside LNRS has created a map which shows the boundaries of international, national and local designated nature conservation and geological sites within the South of Tyne and Wear Local Nature Recovery Strategy area. In June 2024, South Tyneside were asking for their questionnaires to be filled in which asked questions regarding which areas in the region are important for nature and which could be improved.

South Yorkshire - The South Yorkshire LNRS have been conducting a number of surveys and workshops which have been designed to build their understanding of the regions' priorities for nature recovery. These surveys and workshops have now ended but should any engagement opportunities be launched we will keep members informed via our E-news.

Your regional CLA North advisers will continue to represent landowners in the final phases of the LNRS process, identifying possible opportunities and concerns as the details are finalised.

If, following this update you have any questions or concerns, please do contact the regional advice team as we would be happy to discuss the LNRS in your area with you further.

CLA North Rural Adviser Jane Harrison and Graduate Rural Surveyor Emily Richardson can be contacted via 01748 907070.