Biodiversity conservations in Sheffield

We are lead partner in the Sheffield Local Biodiversity Action Plan and a key partner in the Peak District Biodiversity Action Plan. We survey habitats and make recommendations for improvements in terms of quality and quantity of sites, which will benefit wildlife.

These improvements involve working with partners, statutory and non-statutory agencies, community groups and individuals.

Sheffield Local Biodiversity Action Plan

Sheffield Biodiversity Partnership has updated the original Biodiversity Habitat Action Plans for Sheffield. Our Ecology Service as the lead partner has produced Action Plans for 4 main habitat types:

grassland
woodland
heathland
wetland

Each of these Habitat Action Plans will undergo a review once a year to assess and monitor progress of implementation of the plans.

This does not preclude action taking place outside of the sites identified in the plans, or partners and local experts producing or updating detailed plans for species of specific parts of the habitats outlined above, such has been the case for:

Green Roofs
The River Don

Habitat Action Plans

To aid biodiversity conservation we have drawn up Habitat Action Plans (HAPs) for grassland, woodland, heathland and wetland habitats across 130 target sites in Sheffield.

Part of the current HAPs is to identify which of these target sites need to be maintained, which need restoration, and which are suitable for the creation of habitat. We work in partnership with land managers to bring about such changes, either in an advisory or more active role.

New woodland

New woodland is also being established and improved through the 'Urban Nature Project'.

This involves reviewing the management of the sites so that they can support more diverse wildlife and consist of a more mixed landscape, whilst still providing a great place for recreation.

Sites should become better enabled to deliver ecosystem services such as alleviating flooding and providing sustainable urban drainage.

Wetlands

Positive management within a number of wetland HAP sites has been due to the ‘Sheffield Living Waters’ project.

This is creating and connecting habitats for Great Crested Newts, a species identified in the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act Section 41 to be importance to biodiversity conservation.

This project is run between ourselves and ‘Froglife’ and is funded by the SITA trust.

The project uses the current data for Great Crested Newt distribution in southern Sheffield to identify the best possible sites to create new ponds. It seeks to address recent local declines and, in some cases, extinction of Great Crested Newts, which is attributed to the loss of pond habitat or decline in pond quality.

As a result, the project is creating new pond habitat. Eighteen ponds have been created in areas such as Ecclesall Woods, Gleadless Valley and Beauchief Former Nursery in the hope that this will enlarge populations at these sites, increase the great crested newt’s range in Sheffield and enable them to disperse to other sites.

Further surveys will be carried out to evaluate how successful the project has been.

Moorland

We are a core partner of the Sheffield Moors Partnership (including Eastern Moors).

This covers 56km² in the Peak District, a landscape which includes areas designated for habitats, wildlife and outdoor recreations.

The area is owned by several different parties, including ourselves, who work together to improve the landscape and ensure it is managed sustainably.