Natural England facts for kids
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| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 1 October 2006 |
| Jurisdiction | England |
| Headquarters | York, England |
| Employees | 2,577 (2023) |
| Annual budget | £194 million (2015) |
| Agency executives |
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| Parent agency | Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs |
Natural England is a special group in the United Kingdom that works to protect nature. It is supported by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). Its main job is to make sure that England's natural world is safe and healthy. This includes land, plants, animals, rivers, oceans, rocks, and soil.
Natural England also helps people enjoy and learn about nature. They want everyone to understand how important our environment is.
Natural England focuses on four main goals:
- A healthy natural environment for everyone.
- Helping people enjoy the natural world.
- Using nature's resources wisely and sustainably.
- Making sure our environment is safe for the future.
Contents
What Natural England Does
Natural England is an independent body, meaning it works on its own, separate from the main government. However, the Secretary of State for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs can give them advice.
Natural England has many important jobs. They help decide which forests are ancient woodlands. They give out money to projects that help nature. They also mark special places like Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and Sites of Special Scientific Interest. These are places that are very important for their natural beauty or wildlife.
They also look after some national nature reserves. These are areas set aside to protect wildlife and habitats. Natural England helps people get out and enjoy the countryside. They make sure rules about access to nature are followed. They also manage many plans that help pay for protecting and improving the environment. For example, they support schemes like environmental stewardship and the Countryside Stewardship Scheme.
Natural England works to achieve some of Defra's goals. For instance, they aim to help increase the number of birds on farms. They also work to make sure people can easily visit and enjoy the countryside.
How Natural England Started
Natural England was created on 1 October 2006. It was formed by combining parts of three older groups:
- The Countryside Agency, which looked after landscapes, access, and fun outdoor activities.
- English Nature, which focused on protecting wildlife and natural places.
- The Rural Development Service, which managed environmental projects on land for Defra.
Natural England took over all the powers and responsibilities of these older groups.
In 2008, the chairman of Natural England, Sir Martin Doughty, warned about possible dangers from genetically modified crops. Later, in 2012, the next chairman, Poul Christensen, said that new technologies like GM crops could be good. He believed this was true as long as they were tested carefully and had safety rules.
Activities and Projects
Understanding England's Environment
In May 2008, Natural England released a report called State of the Natural Environment. This report collected many facts and numbers about England's environment. It was made to help environmental groups and lawmakers understand the current state of nature. It works with other reports, like those from the Environment Agency about environmental facts. It also complements reports from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds about UK birds.
Green Exercise for Health
Natural England helped fund eight pilot projects for "green exercise." These projects encouraged people to be more active outdoors. They also helped people feel more connected to their local green spaces. The goal was to show how spending time in nature can be good for your health.
Building Green Infrastructure
Natural England promotes the idea of green infrastructure. This means planning and creating natural spaces within towns and cities. These spaces can be parks, green roofs, or even street trees. They provide many benefits for people and nature. Natural England believes green infrastructure should be part of all new building projects. It should also help improve existing urban areas.
Natural England works with partners to create green infrastructure plans. They want to show how these ideas can work well in real life. They are also part of Neighbourhoods Green. This group works with housing providers to make sure green spaces in social housing are well-designed and cared for.
Protecting Rivers from Pollution
In 2019 and 2020, Natural England noticed a problem in some rivers. New housing developments could lead to more sewage, which would increase levels of nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus in the water. Too many nutrients can harm river ecosystems. Natural England advised that new buildings should only go ahead if they can stop this pollution. They want to make sure the nutrient levels stay "neutral."
Important Legal Cases
Natural England has been involved in some legal cases. In 2006, they had a case against Peter Boggis. He was a man who built defenses to protect his house from erosion on the Suffolk coast. Natural England said his house was in a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). They argued that his actions went against protecting the SSSI. Natural England lost the first case in 2009. The judge said Mr. Boggis's "human predicament" was more important. However, Natural England won when they appealed the decision later in 2009.
Changes to Bird Licences
On 23 April 2019, Natural England changed some rules about controlling certain wild birds. They removed three "general licences" that allowed people to use firearms to control 16 species of birds. These included crows, gulls, pigeons, and non-native birds like Canada gooses. Natural England made this change after an environmental group questioned the licences. This meant farmers could not immediately control these birds without asking for special permission.
A few days later, Natural England started issuing new licences. They first issued one for controlling carrion crows. Defra then issued more licences for most of the other bird species. The Environment Secretary, Michael Gove, took over responsibility for these licences from Natural England in May 2019.
See also
- Ancient woodland
- England Coast Path
- National Character Area
- National nature reserves in England
- Sir Martin Doughty – first Chair of Natural England 2006–2009
- Tony Juniper – current Chair of Natural England
