 For the Welsh version of this newsletter click here 📷Ed Moskalenko
Welcome to the Winter 2024 issue of Picturesque, the first under our new name of the Wye Valley National Landscape, reflecting our national importance alongside the National Parks and National Trails.
In this issue:
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Welcome to the Wye Valley National Landscape
River Wye: Wyescapes and Wye Adapt to Climate Change? Projects
Farming in Protected Landscapes (FiPL)
Grants & Funding (SDF and SLSP)
Tracks and Trails Consultation
Wye Valley National Landscape Volunteers
Planning Position Statements
Miles without Stiles
Access Training and Walks Development
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Welcome to the Wye Valley National Landscape
 Welcome to our new name - the Wye Valley National Landscape. All 38 Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in England and Wales have been renamed National Landscapes to stand alongside our sister organisations, the National Parks and National Trails. The new name reflects our national importance, highlighting the vital contribution we are all making to protect the nation from the threats of climate change, nature depletion and the wellbeing crisis.
Why are we doing this?
This is an opportunity to demonstrate our size, the value of the work we deliver, and the welcome we give to all people. For every £1 of core funding we receive, National Landscapes Teams deliver at least £4 of work on the ground by securing external funding, mobilising volunteers and collaborating with partners.
The Government’s 2019 Landscapes (Glover) Review concluded these partnerships were undervalued. Covering 15% of the land area of England, National Landscapes are twice the size of the National Parks, yet receive one tenth of the funding. This size and scope ideally positions us to address the UK’s environmental issues.
Creating greater understanding and awareness of the work we do
The Glover Review recommended that Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty should be strengthened with new purposes, powers and resources, and renamed as National Landscapes with a simpler name to improve recognition and reflect our national importance. With a unified identity across the National Landscapes family we are better able to show the collective size, ambition and impact of the network, creating a stronger case for funding: https://www.national-landscapes.org.uk
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Welcoming Everyone
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We have taken this opportunity to make our brand more accessible and inclusive, delivering on the recommendations of the Glover Review to make all people feel welcome and all voices heard. We are the UK’s nearby countryside – 44m people live within 30 minutes of a National Landscape and at least 170m visit them every year.
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The River Wye - Bad News and Good News
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In 2023 the River Wye and River Lugg had their status downgraded by Natural England to ‘unfavourable – declining’ due to the deterioration in Atlantic salmon, white-clawed crayfish and aquatic plant numbers. The Wye Valley National Landscape is at the bottom of the Wye catchment, covering about 1/3 of the river by length but less than 10% of the catchment by area. Most of the problems arise upstream of the protected landscape so we have been working to influence those upstream with the capacity and remit to address issues. The good news is we have two new projects directly addressing the health of the Wye: |
Wyescapes
Working with Herefordshire Rural Hub, Herefordshire Wildlife Trust and the Wye and Usk Foundation, we are delighted that the Wye is to benefit from new DEFRA funding for Landscape Recovery. The Wyescapes (food, nature, water) project is planned to operate on a large scale and aims to help restore the Wye catchment to a healthy condition. It focuses on a huge area of floodplain from Goodrich to Bredwardine and Leominster, with 36 farmers currently engaged and scope to widen to an even larger area. Farmers will be supported to take actions to restore the health of the rivers, such as reducing the intensity of production, reverting some fields from arable to create new wetlands, floodplain grassland and woodlands. These will provide flood storage and improved biodiversity for breeding and wintering wading bird populations. More info: Wyescapes
Wye Adapt to Climate Change
 📷Adam Fisher
A second project focused on the Wye is also just beginning – the Wye Adapt to Climate Change? Project – with the Wye Valley National Landscape teaming up with Herefordshire Wildlife Trust and Radnorshire Wildlife Trust to work on a catchment scale. Holly Williams, one of the three project officers, is based in the Wye Valley National Landscape Team in Monmouth. The project will focus on supporting farmers, land managers and local communities to adapt to climate change within the Wye catchment in Radnorshire, Herefordshire, Gloucestershire and Monmouthshire.
Significant changes to weather and climate in recent years have impacted people, wildlife and the environment. Flooding in the Wye catchment is likely to become more severe and unpredictable with climate change. The project will focus on creating a climate-resilient landscape by working with landowners, land managers and local communities exploring nature-based solutions and sustainable land management. Holly will be promoting the creation of community climate action networks to support local communities in making positive changes to adapt to and mitigate against the effects of a changing climate. This project is funded by The National Lottery Community Fund. Contact Holly Williams: h.williams@herefordshirewt.co.uk
Farming in Protected Landscapes (FiPL) programme
 📷J. Hardwick
It has been a fantastic year for our Farming in Protected Landscapes (FiPL) programme, the DEFRA funding stream for projects enabling nature recovery, mitigating climate change, supporting nature-friendly, sustainable farm businesses and providing opportunities for people to discover and understand the landscape.
In the last 12 months, the programme has funded 40 projects on the English side of the National Landscape, supporting farmers, smallholders, Parish Councils and charities involved in land management, agriculture and conservation. Projects range from species rich meadow restoration to tree and hedgerow planting, renovating traditional orchards, bokashi composting, improving public access, establishing herbal leys and cover crops, refurbishing heritage structures and purchasing farm machinery and equipment to enable farm diversification. The scope of activities reflects both the flexibility of the grant and the range of priorities and themes we strive to promote. Find out about all the local projects supported through FiPL funding here.
We have organised a number of educational farm walks and events. A farmer group's trip to the herbal ley event at FarmEd resulted in some new plantings of this great soil improving crop in the Wye Valley. Farm walks at Townsend Farm have inspired consideration of regenerative farming methods and principles. The most recent Breakfast on the Farm event, run in collaboration with Herefordshire Food Alliance, was a celebration of locally produced, river friendly food, where producers shared their stories with the public.
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In collaboration with our partners, we have been able to offer comprehensive, tailored advice on new and existing agri-environmental schemes, such as the Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), a subject of great importance for farmers in the current period of agricultural transition. FiPL funded training opportunities have been rolled out for the benefit of farmers and land managers, such as the Countryside Educational Visits Accreditation Scheme CEVAS delivered by LEAF Education, and the Pasture for Profit in Protected Landscapes mentoring programme by Pasture for Life. If you have an idea for a land-based project, need some help to develop a plan for your farm or would like to be kept informed about our farming focused events and training, contact Anna Stankiewicz, FiPL Officer on 07496 48764.
Grants and Funding
Sustainable Development Fund (SDF)
The Sustainable Development Fund (SDF) is a Welsh Government funding stream for projects in the Welsh part of the National Landscape. Grants are available for practical, innovative schemes that engage with local communities and help to conserve and enhance natural beauty and local wildlife, or support communities and social well-being. We can offer grants from £1,000 up to £25,000 in exceptional cases. If you have an innovative project idea talk to Lucinda James, Community Links Officer: community@wyevalleyaonb.org.uk to see if it would be eligible.
We are supporting some fantastic projects this year:
 Hedgehog First Response Unit to the Rescue
A wonderful SDF project we are supporting is ‘Hedgehog Aware’ run by our fantastic Hedgehog Champion, Dylan Allman. Hedgehogs are one of the nation's most loved mammals yet on the Red List as Vulnerable to Extinction. Dylan's idea for a Volunteer Hedgehog First Response Unit has now become a reality. Running as a pilot for 6 months, volunteers are now providing a rapid response to reports of injured, sick, or stranded hedgehogs in the Monmouth and Chepstow area. Volunteers have received wild hedgehog first aid training and been issued with rescue kits. They can provide advice, liaise with a rescue centre or wildlife-friendly vet and help with transporting the hedgehog. If you find a hedgehog in distress call the 24/7 Hedgehog First Response hotline number on 01600 605125. More info
Coed Lleol / Small Woods Wellbeing Project
This project aims to help improve the health and wellbeing of people through woodland and nature-based activities and connecting people with nature and themselves. Wild and Free sessions have been running at Old Station Tintern, whittling wood, learning bush craft skills and gathering around the fire. More info: carliporter@smallwoods.org.uk.
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Sustainable Landscapes, Sustainable Places (SLSP)
Sustainable Landscapes, Sustainable Places is a Welsh Government funding programme to create and foster more sustainable and resilient communities, landscapes and access, providing over £8 million to support projects in the eight Welsh Designated Landscapes. Through this funding the Wye Valley National Landscape Team has supported control of Invasive Non-Native Species (INNS) and work on the Wye Valley Walk. SLSP has also been used to offer community buildings and village halls small grants to help them work towards decarbonizing, becoming more energy efficient and enabling them to cut costs and be more sustainable. So far we have supported six community buildings with four more in the pipeline.
Llandogo Village Hall used this grant to provide match funding for a larger Lottery Fund bid to install solar panels and a battery. The battery allows the hall to store energy generated during the day for when the hall is being used in the evening, and to charge it up using cheaper, greener energy overnight during the winter. The hall has emergency backup power during power cuts, so locals can charge phones and keep warm!
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Lower Wye Tracks & Trails Project - Drop In Sessions 27 & 28th Feb
We are working to create an Action Plan for Recreational Access in the Monmouthshire section of the National Landscape, to help provide the best experience for everyone to enjoy the tracks and trails here. The aim is to develop the most practical ways of supporting the requirements of all types of users, while protecting the natural and built environment.
Following a 12 week public consultation (with 350 responses) there will be two public drop in sessions where you can view the ideas coming out of the consultation and talk to project staff about the next stage. They are: 27 February at St Arvans Memorial Hall 3pm - 7pm and 28th February at Pelham Hall 3pm - 7pm. Tracks and Trails Project
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Wye Valley National Landscape Volunteers
 Our volunteer work aligns with our goals for nature recovery in the National Landscape and we have had some wonderfully rewarding volunteer outings, including an epic two day Army Challenge. Two hundred fruit trees were planted in one day on Regen Ben's Townsend Farm at Brampton Abbotts, whilst at Jamie's Farm, volunteers rose to the challenge of planting 2000m of hedgerows, creating vital nature corridors between the Forest of Dean and the woodlands of the Wye Valley. In the Northern section of the National Landscape more work to create nature corridors was undertaken by volunteers at Checkley, supporting Philip Eels who also received funding through our Farming in Protected Landscapes programme. The wonderful view at Coxbury Farm helped volunteers plant 1600 hedge whips in just one day, creating wildlife corridors joining up adjacent woodland.
Volunteers had the chance to build up their arm muscles, scything in the Angidy Valley with the Tintern Angling Club and helping create a grassland area around the fishing pools that will be rich in wildflowers, insects and invertebrates. There has also been some wonderful collaborative work with the Severn Area Rescue Association (SARA) and Gwent Wildlife Trust, including an action packed litter pick along an inaccessible stretch of the Wye at Piercefield, requiring rope access specialists, boats and some serious mud manoeuvring! More gentle, but equally as important and rewarding has been the building of bee hotels and invertebrate walls with Monmouthshire Meadows Group at Wet Meadow near Trellech.
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We hosted volunteers from Army Recruitment Teams in South Wales, the South West and the Midlands for their annual summer challenge. With Ross Walkers are Welcome we created the ‘Miles without Stiles Army Challenge’ over an epic two days. The teams joined us in Walford and Brampton Abbotts enthusiastically digging, removing stiles and replacing them with gates. John from Ross Walkers are Welcome and Ian, one of our Wye Valley National Landscape Volunteers, provided fantastic leadership for the Army teams. By the end of the challenge eight stiles had been removed and seven new gates installed, helping to make footpaths and access to the National Landscape so much easier.
A lovely group of enthusiastic staff from ArcadisGlobal chose to spend their annual volunteering day helping to restore the precious peatland at Cleddon Bog by clearing invasive birch trees. A big 'thank you' to everyone who has given their time! Click here if you would like to volunteer.
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Planning Position Statements in the Wye Valley National Landscape
 Josh Bailey, our Wye Valley National Landscape Planning Officer, has been busy drafting two Position Statements on Housing in the Wye Valley National Landscape and its Setting, and Landscape-Led Development. Both position statements establish the position of the Wye Valley National Landscape Partnership on key issues affecting the area, helping guide plan-making and decision-making bodies to articulate how the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) designation can be protected, conserved and enhanced. They provide further context, guidance and recommendations in relation to the existing Wye Valley AONB Management Plan Strategic Objectives and associated issues..
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We consulted on both statements and their appendices and the Position Statements were unanimously endorsed by the Wye Valley AONB Joint Advisory Committee meeting in November 2023. These Position Statements will now be referred to in responses to Development Management/Strategic Planning consultations with the Local Planning Authorities who are within the National Landscape. |
Josh is looking to produce further Position Statements and Guidance, on Renewable Energy and on Dark Skies, to help supplement the Wye Valley AONB Management Plan and other plan-making bodies in their reviews of Local/Neighbourhood Plans. This also neatly coincides with the recent passing of the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act 2023, strengthening the duty on relevant authorities to further the conservation and enhancement of natural beauty to contribute to the delivery of the statutory AONB Management Plans, which will have stronger links to national targets. |
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Miles without Stiles
Ross Walkers are Welcome first started creating a ‘Miles without Stiles’ network over 10 years ago, making some lovely barrier free circular walks and along parts of the Wye Valley Walk. Stiles are a major problem for people with mobility issues and for dogs who cannot jump over them.
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During 2023, Ross Walkers are Welcome worked with 27 local landowners, securing their agreement to replace more than 40 stiles with gates. Another 40 plus stiles will be replaced in 2024.The project has been funded by DEFRA Access for All uplift in funding to the Wye Valley AONB of £60K in 2022/2023, with £52K in 2023/2024 and a further £72k in 2024/2025.
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We are grateful to all the Volunteers from Ross Walkers are Welcome, Herefordshire Ramblers, Parish Councils Footpaths Officers, EnviroAbility, the Wye Valley National Landscape Volunteers and Army Recruitment Teams who have had a tremendous impact, removing old wooden stiles, digging holes and mixing concrete to install new gates.
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Access Training and Route Development
 The rebranding to National Landscapes involved a critical look at the barriers which prevent people from visiting the countryside. A lack of accessible paths and very little information about suitable routes are significant barriers preventing disabled people from exploring the Wye Valley National Landscape. We have been focusing our efforts on creating an accessible route (The Willow Walk) north of Ross-on-Wye.
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During Autumn 2023 we ran two days of access training with local wheelchair users, the Disabled Ramblers and Rights of Way officers, to see how we can better help disabled people access the outdoors using existing tracks and paths. Led by Craig Grimes from Experience Community, we tested a route from Townsend Farm, Brampton Abbotts, down to the Wye and along riverside fields. Trampers and mountain trikes coped with the terrain admirably enabling disabled walkers to reach a lovely bend in the Wye where sand martins nest and cormorants gather. |
What did we learn? We need to do more of this! The joy of being out in the countryside and close to nature has so many benefits for wheelers and walkers. The route we tested creates a loop off the Wye Valley Walk north of Ross-on-Wye, where we have been working to remove barriers. One narrow bridge along the riverside path has already been replaced (see right and new bridge below).
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 Two more bridges, which are too narrow for wheelchairs and pushchairs, will be replaced in March. These improvements will make the Wye Valley Walk barrier free all the way to the Townsend Farm loop, where a disabled toilet has been installed.
New DEFRA Access for All funding enabled these improvements to create the accessible ‘Willow Walk’ from Ross-on-Wye. We have also started testing routes on the Welsh side of the National Landscape. If you are interested in being involved contact: community@wyevalleyaonb.org.uk
Welcome
We have welcomed three new faces to the National Landscapes Team. Over to Holly, Josh and Juliana to introduce themselves...
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I’m Holly Williams, Programme Officer for the Wye Adapt to Climate Change? Project. My background is in wetland conservation, recently working for Ducks Unlimited Canada and the Freshwater Habitats Trust restoring and creating clean-water ponds for wildlife. I am looking forward to working with farmers, land managers and local communities within the National Landscape to deliver projects which increase climate-resiliency and reverse the current decline of wildlife. |
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I’m Josh Bailey the National Landscape’s Planning Officer. My role is to comment on planning applications and respond to consultations at a strategic & planning policy level. I have also been drafting new Position Statements on Housing, Landscape-led Development and Dark Skies. After completing my masters, I returned ‘home’, working for Herefordshire Council as Planning/Senior Planning Officer before moving to this shared post with the Malvern Hills National Landscape. |
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I’m Juliana Foster, Business Support Assistant. My experience has been in Banking and Education, so this is quite different to what I have done before! I have been lucky enough to live in the National Landscape my whole life. Commuting to work through the beautiful Wye Valley is something I’m really appreciating as I learn that the landscape is so much more ‘than just a pretty picture’. There are lots of things we can ALL do to conserve and improve this gorgeous place. |
And Goodbye...
After 13 years as our Finance Officer we said ‘Goodbye’ to Sharon Seymour. We also said ‘Goodbye’ to Ellie Baggett, our Nature Recovery Officer, and Nickie Moore, our Lower Wye Project Officer. We wish them all the best for the future.
Just before Nickie left she attended the Council for Protection of Rural England (CPRE) Gloucestershire Awards 2023, where the Wye Valley National Landscape Partnership received an award for work undertaken by the Wye Invasive Species Project (WISP) “for providing a model for taking positive action to stop invasive non-native species”. Nickie managed WISP with support from Alan Martin (Nature Conservation Services), Meyrick Ames (the Wye & Usk Foundation) and Alex Crawley (Conservation Grazing Management) as well as many enthusiastic individuals and volunteers who made this project so successful.
Congratulations to everyone involved! Here's Nickie and representatives from the WISP collaboration receiving their CPRE awards. L to R: Meyrick Ames, Nickie Moore, Jane & Steve Gilliard (The Narth & District Footpath Group). 📷 Andrew Higgins
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For more information about the Wye Valley National Landscape visit:www.wyevalley-nl.org.uk
Wye Valley National Landscape Team, Hadnock Road, Monmouth. NP25 3NG
t. 01600 713977 e. information@wyevalleyaonb.org.uk
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