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NORTHERN DEVON NATURE IMPROVEMENT AREA Report and recommendations to Devon Local Nature Partnership October 2015

The Northern Devon Nature Improvement Area is in its fourth year, covering the river Torridge catchment in north Devon, a predominantly rural area of over 72,000ha. The NIA started in early 2012 as one of twelve high-profile landscape scale approaches in England, supported by Defra as part of its Natural Environment White Paper targets.

Since that time, the Northern Devon NIA has proved itself as an exemplar of ambitious, innovative landscape scale conservation, which genuinely takes a multi-disciplinary and integrated approach to the landscape. It is led by Devon Wildlife Trust under the banner of the North Devon Biosphere, and supported by staff and resources from 15 different partner organisations including Natural England, Environment Agency, Forestry Commission, Exeter and Plymouth Universities, local authorities, local environmental and arts charities, local businesses and more.

The NIA’s achievements and learning are summarised in a recent report: http://www.northerndevonnia.org/uploads/news/documents/38-1.pdf Defra’s project funding finished in March 2015 and the NIA partnership has developed a number of diverse projects to continue working towards its vision.

This paper reviews the achievements, learning and current work of the Northern Devon NIA towards Devon Local Nature Partnership objectives. Based on this experience, we make a number of recommendations for LNP actions to support and strengthen the landscape scale approach in Devon.

Contribution to achieving Devon LNP objectives

Farming with Nature So far the NIA has worked with 276 different farmers and landowners and provided 1:1 advice covering 21% of the land area of the catchment. We have been the catalyst for restoration of over 1500ha of grassland, 106km of hedgerow and 19ha of woodland, and a further 81ha of new habitat created, raising £3.7 million in grants for environmental work during the last three years. We have also given landowners practical assistance with machinery and grazing, delivered 35 landowner workshops, and trialed a whole-farm, integrated approach to advice on biodiversity and water quality.

Our experience demonstrates that a significant proportion of farmers are keen to increase biodiversity on their land, with the right levels of support. We are now developing landowner support through a new Facilitation Fund project in the Torridge headwaters.

Resilient Wetlands The Torridge catchment holds approximately 35% of the UK’s Culm grassland resource. DWT’s research with Exeter University has shown that Culm grassland could play a significant role in managing flood risk. The practical application of this knowledge is being developed through a new project. The NIA has also delivered significant water quality advice through Catchment Sensitive Farming towards Water Framework Directive outcomes. We are working to reverse the fortunes of the freshwater pearl mussel, for which the Torridge is the last stronghold in southern England. NORTHERN DEVON NATURE IMPROVEMENT AREA Report and recommendations to Devon Local Nature Partnership October 2015

Our experience has shown that natural catchment management through habitat restoration and re- creation should be considered on a larger scale throughout the county.

Wood for Good The NIA has provided woodland advice to landowners focused on biodiversity and ecosystem services potential through woodfuel (including hedges). The Torridge is part of the new Woodland Enterprise Zone promoted by the Biosphere and its partners, and we are hopeful that this work can continue, linking undermanaged woodlands with a growing local woodfuel market.

We have learnt that the biodiversity element of woodland projects is often lower on the list of priorities. Good woodland management can lead to significant biodiversity improvements, so keeping this focus at the heart of woodland projects is important.

Outdoor Learning From 2012-15 the NIA ran a varied community engagement programme, taking 52 schools groups out on site, running 7 Citizen Science projects including the hugely successful Riverfly programme with 50 volunteer surveyors, providing skills training for landowners, and delivering over 150 community events. Our partner Beaford Arts also commissioned two theatre pieces – one as interactive family theatre, and one series of dialogues, ‘The Common’, about ways in which the land is valued.

Whilst schools are keen to visit their local natural environment, they are often hampered by lack of facilities and transport. Building these requirements into future projects would enable more outdoor learning.

Naturally Healthy The NIA has so far run 36 volunteering days out on site, and we are keen to develop the local potential for health and wellbeing connections to the natural environment, particularly focused on access and community sites.

Through our research and direct observation, we have found that there is great potential for the health sector to make use of the natural environment for both recuperation and prevention of physical and mental illness, as well as providing support for healthcare professionals. However, we have found it a challenge to link the health and environment sectors into one significant project.

Green Connections The NIA has worked with 15 different parishes on community wildlife projects so far, including major sites like Hatherleigh and Torrington Commons. A study by Exeter University of the Meeth- Merton area showed that many people have limited access to, and knowledge of, their local environment, despite this very rural catchment. We have included access to natural greenspace as one of our monitoring indicators.

Our experience shows that there is a strong desire across rural communities to deliver local community wildlife projects but that these groups require ongoing support and networking.

Sustainable Seas The NIA does not cover marine and coastal issues directly, and the project area currently stops just below Bideford short of the estuary. However, actions on improving water quality within the catchment can only be of benefit. NORTHERN DEVON NATURE IMPROVEMENT AREA Report and recommendations to Devon Local Nature Partnership October 2015

Next steps for Northern Devon NIA

Through our Stage 2 Business Plan, the Northern Devon NIA Partnership currently has three active and two developing new projects, as follows:

 We host the Catchment Sensitive Farming advisor for the Taw, Torridge and North Devon Streams Partnership (funded by Natural England and Environment Agency). 1 year April 2015 – March 2016 confirmed.

 Freshwater Pearl Mussel project (funded by Biffa Award): to protect the existing, critically endangered populations of pearl mussel in the Torridge, improve habitat and water quality, and attempt a successful programme of captive breeding and release. 3 years February 2015 – February 2018.

 Torridge Headwaters Facilitation Fund project (funded by Natural England): to support a community of 80+ landowners to make a wide range of environmental improvements on their land, through workshops, site visits, training and sharing skills, and the new Countryside Stewardship Scheme. 5 years July 2015 – June 2020.

 Culm Grassland Flood Risk project: in development with Environment Agency / Devon County Council / European partners. Creation and restoration of Culm grassland and research to assist in management of flood risk. Potentially 5 years.

 Health and Wellbeing project: in early development.

The NIA Steering Group meets on a quarterly basis and reports to the Biosphere Partnership. We also play a very active part in delivering the North Devon Catchment Partnership’s work. NIA project staff including the Project Manager are hosted by Devon Wildlife Trust.

NIAs and LNPs in England

Originally, NIAs were intended to be the first step in a much broader landscape scale ambition across the country, and there are of course many other landscape scale approaches in Devon and across England. The NIAs, through Defra’s new Monitoring and Evaluation Framework, have attempted to monitor their outcomes not just for nature, but also measures of social and economic impacts, ecosystem services and partnership working. This has met with mixed success so far.

Despite the end of its financial support for local NIA work, Defra still holds NIAs in its portfolio with national support staff in Natural England, and we are awaiting announcement of their intentions for landscape scale work in the future. The three year report of the twelve original NIAs and their results will be published by Defra in November, and there will be a national meeting hosted by NORTHERN DEVON NATURE IMPROVEMENT AREA Report and recommendations to Devon Local Nature Partnership October 2015

Defra in January 2016 covering aspects of landscape scale work including NIAs, Facilitation Fund areas and Catchment Partnerships.

Defra encourages NIAs and LNPs to work closely together, and in some cases LNPs now govern local NIA partnerships. In 2013 Defra published criteria for locally determined NIAs, to be identified and championed by LNPs. They can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/criteria-to-apply-when-identifying-nature- improvement-areas

Recommendations for Devon LNP

The Northern Devon NIA Steering Group would like to strengthen its connections with Devon Local Nature Partnership: both to assist in the overall Devon landscape scale effort towards achieving LNP objectives, and to gain support for the continuation of our work.

We have the following recommendations for the Devon LNP Board:

 At a time of continuing cuts within the sector, it is essential that the ambition and vision of landscape scale conservation is not lost for Devon, and that this latest development in environmental thinking is championed and promoted. We recommend that Devon LNP lobbies Defra strongly to continue to develop, support and promote landscape scale approaches such as NIAs, and to continue to champion the NIA ‘brand’. Even if Defra funding is not forthcoming, policy support and championing of the approach within statutory organisations and as part of public policy would be extremely beneficial.

 Devon LNP may wish to consider the identification of ‘locally determined’ NIAs to emphasise its support and commitment to landscape scale approaches, and achieve better recognition for all landscape scale projects in the county.

 Devon LNP can help NIA(s) access new sources of funding, for example the LEP with current woodfuel proposals, and to use NIA(s) as testbeds for innovative approaches within a landscape scale context. One example of this is the NIA partnership’s desire to develop a Health and Wellbeing project – we would welcome the LNP’s expertise and support in this area.

 Devon LNP could usefully promote the sharing of experience between different landscape scale projects, staff and volunteers in the county, to benefit the development of all projects.

 Devon LNP may wish to learn lessons from Defra’s Monitoring and Evaluation Framework and encourage recording and collation of simple landscape scale data in a consistent format, to reflect the degree and scale of landscape scale work underway across the county. For example, asking all projects to record the hectarage of land adjacent to rivers put into more sympathetic management every year would give a clear indicator of progress in this area.

Lisa Schneidau, NIA Project Manager NORTHERN DEVON NATURE IMPROVEMENT AREA Report and recommendations to Devon Local Nature Partnership October 2015

On behalf of the Northern Devon Nature Improvement Area Steering Group October 2015 01409 221823 / 07881 303024 [email protected]