Wildlife Trusts Demand Urban Green Spaces Within Walking Distance — SkimNews
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- The Wildlife Trusts, a federation of 47 independent UK conservation charities, is calling on the government to improve people's access to nature amid evidence that many lack parks or woodlands within a 15-minute walk.
- A coalition led by the Horticultural Trades Association and the Gardens Trust is pushing for trees, plants, gardens and parks to be recognized as essential infrastructure backed by long-term investment.
- Lancashire Wildlife Trust has transformed Cutacre, a former open-cast coal mine on the edge of Salford, into meadows, wetlands and ponds grazed by longhorn cattle, creating habitat for grey partridge, lapwing, skylark, grasshopper warbler and willow tit.
- Stephen Cartwright of the Lancashire Wildlife Trust said Cutacre's location—bordered by a housing estate, industrial units and communities in Salford, Bolton, Wigan and Manchester—was its most important feature, because nearby children 'won't travel to nature reserves.'
- Friends of Lordship Rec has spent more than two decades transforming Tottenham's Lordship Recreation Ground from a neglected, unsafe space into woodland, meadows, an orchard and a restored watercourse, backed by £7m in lottery and other funding.
- David Morris, chairman of the Friends group, said 'every neighbourhood should have access to a public green space' and called for increased funding for parks.
Why it matters: Two major coalitions and grassroots groups are now formally demanding that nature access be treated as infrastructure, putting pressure on UK policymakers ahead of planning decisions that shape whether growing urban communities get green space within walking distance—or none at all.
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