Berkshire, Buckinghamshire & Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT) used its biggest-ever fundraiser to achieve its largest-ever land holding and increased its membership to its highest-ever level in a single year.

The charity now manages 86 nature reserves covering 2,700 hectares and has more than 28,000 members.

The charity revealed its record-breaking achievements in its 2022 annual report.

In the same 12 months the charity also completed a £2 million project to create a new channel of the River Thames, surveyed 170km of roadside verges for wildlife, launched two urban community projects and commented on 56 major planning applications.

Estelle Bailey, Chief Executive of BBOWT, said:
"In the period this report covers, our country was fighting a pandemic that battered the economy, hit millions of people's personal finances, and caused untold national suffering. Despite that, people in Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire showed record-breaking support for our work, giving us more power to help wildlife than ever before.

"Every single one of those people's membership fees and donations helped us to expand our work to create more nature everywhere in our three counties. We are in the midst of a nature and climate crisis, and despite the incredibly difficult times we are living through, both financially and emotionally, the people of Berks, Bucks and Oxon still  chose to support wildlife on their doorsteps. For that we are eternally grateful – but we know we still have a lot of important work to do.”

One of Trust’s first major achievements in the 2021/2022 financial year that the report covers was the acquisition of a 31-hectare new nature reserve. The charity was able to buy Ludgershall Meadows on the Oxfordshire/ Buckinghamshire border near Bicester after running its biggest-ever fundraising appeal last summer, to which generous members of public donated more than £330,000. The agricultural fields will now be restored to traditional wildflower hay meadows and form part of the Trust's Upper Ray Meadows network of reserves.

In the autumn the Trust embarked on a new project to survey roadsides across an entire district then create new wild habitat. The West Berkshire Wild Verges project team - made up mostly of volunteers - have now surveyed more than 170km of land and are working with West Berkshire Council to identify areas that could be improved.

In the winter the Trust installed two new bird hides at its Nature Discovery Centre in Thatcham that were created out of recycled shipping containers.

In the spring, the Trust received £90,000 from the National Lottery Heritage Fund to launch a Nextdoor Nature project working with communities in urban Reading and Slough to create new green spaces.

This summer, staff in West Oxfordshire announced the completion of a landmark, £2 million project to create a new channel of the River Thames for wildlife at the Trust's largest reserve, Chimney Meadows. The EU-funded project also created new wetland habitat which can provide a home and nesting ground to a host of species including the iconic curlew, populations of which are in national decline.

In the same year the Trust also completed its three-year Hedgerow Havens project in Buckinghamshire, celebrated the 80th anniversary of its Dancersend Nature Reserve near Tring, continued its badger vaccination project, launched a new community garden at its Nature Discovery Centre in Thatcham, relaunched its annual photography competition and launched its Team Wilder initiative encouraging people to take their own actions for nature where they live.

A new private ecological consultancy service - Future Nature - will feed its profits back into the Trust, while an expanded Land Advice Service for farmers and landowners will promote sustainable agriculture and wildlife-friendly land management.

The Trust also launched a project to find new land to turn into nature reserves in north Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire. Part of this plan is to implement Biodiversity Net Gain - a new model under which developers such as housebuilders will be required to pay to create more biodiversity than they destroy at nearby sites. The Trust has already contributed to several local councils' work on rolling this new system out.

2021/22: The BBOWT Year in numbers

• Acquired 31-hectare Ludgershall Meadows on Ox/Bucks border, increasing landholdings to a record 2,700 hectares over 86 sites
• Completed £2 million wetland restoration project in West Oxfordshire
• Carried out botanical surveys on 170km of roadsides in West Berkshire
• Responded to 56 planning applications where development threatened nature (85% of which were withdrawn, refused or amended with improvements for wildlife)
• Launched two community projects in Reading and Slough
• Installed two new bird hides and walking trails at Thatcham Nature Discovery Centre
• Increased membership to new record high of 28,539 members.

George Levvy, Chairman of BBOWT’s board of Trustees, commented:

“This was an incredible year for us, but we know there are enormous challenges ahead, as we try to tackle nature’s decline, halt climate change and connect people with wildlife in very tough economic times. Nature needs us now more than ever before and we hope people will continue to support our vital work, as we fight to secure a wilder future for us all.”

Find out more about BBOWT’s work in its 2021-22 Impact Report here.