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Charity pledges to 'ramp up' wildlife habitat work

National Trust/Annapurna Mellor A female gardener, wearing a navy blue polo shirt, crouches down as she tends to colourful shrubs and flowers at the Castlefield Viaduct urban park in Manchester.National Trust/Annapurna Mellor
Manchester's Castlefield Viaduct is among the National Trust's schemes to improve urban access to nature

Wildlife habitats along the River Bollin in Cheshire will be improved following recent flood damage, the National Trust has said.

The river breached its banks at the Quarry Bank estate, which is managed by the conservation charity, on New Year's Day, causing damage to the garden and buildings.

Celebrating its 130th birthday, the National Trust said it would "ramp up our work to restore nature" across the country during the next decade.

In the north-west of England, it has already announced the creation of new woodland in Sefton, Merseyside and a £1.2m investment for repairs of a 420-year-old barn at Gawthorpe Hall in Padiham, Lancashire.

The imposing three-storey stone-fronted Gawthorpe Hall, with a tower in its centre on an additional level. The hall is surrounded by a neatly mown lawn, trees and shrubs.
The Elizabethan Gawthorpe Hall was redesigned by Sir Charles Barry, architect of the Houses of Parliament and Highclere Castle

A free park at Manchester's Castlefield Viaduct is also being expanded as part of a drive to encourage more greenery in cities and towns.

From spring, National Trust volunteers working near the River Bollin will be involved in restoring a network of "climate-resilient freshwater habitats".

The National Trust was established in 1895 with the aim of opening up natural and historical areas for people to enjoy.

Director general Hilary McGrady said: "Today, nature is declining before our eyes and climate change is threatening homes and habitats on a colossal scale."

She said her organisation was "uniquely placed to do something about these challenges".

Ms McGrady pledged to "ramp up our work to restore nature, both on our own land and beyond our boundaries".

NT Images/Andrew Butler Large rocks on the green slopes and hills of the Peak District on a sunny day.NT Images/Andrew Butler
The National Trust is encouraging supporters to "adopt a plot" in the Peak District

The charity is encouraging people to sponsor the management of areas in six sites across the UK – including the Peak District - via an "adopt a plot" scheme.

In recent years, the National Trust has faced criticism - including from a group of Conservative MPs - about its presentation of colonial history.

The charity responded by saying that while "there is so much to be proud of... history can also be challenging and contentious".

The National Trust said it intended to "capture this complexity".

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