Green light for new reserve in Staffordshire

Land near Stafford town centre is set to become the borough council's biggest nature reserve after community leaders gave plans the green light.

Stafford Borough Council already owns the 17-ha section of floodplain meadow next to Fairway, which is now to be declared a Local Nature Reserve (LNR). The land is currently described as "poor quality from an ecological perspective", but habitat management is expected to improve biodiversity.

Land off Fairfield Way, Stafford, set to be designated as a nature reserve (Google Maps).

Current proposals include planting up to 10,000 trees, restoring native Black Poplars to the riverside, developing flower meadows and enhancing wetland scrapes. Councillor Jonathan Price, cabinet member for environment, who presented the report at Thursday's meeting, said: "My love of nature and passion to create greener, biodiverse areas in our borough, along with that of our officers, has been a driving force to secure this space for future generations.

"The 42 acres – or 17 hectares – we are proposing shows just how important this is to us. The project will result in the largest Stafford Borough Council-owned Local Nature Reserve and it will be right here in the centre of Stafford.

"The proposed LNR area is already an important piece of Stafford's floodplain, which includes both the River Sow and Penk within its boundary. This beautiful area presents a perfect opportunity to enhance this green corridor by restoring habitats, to encourage and benefit our local wildlife."