Seeds sown to bring nature closer to 10 million people across the UK in the next 10 years

• New national mission launched to enable millions more people to enjoy nature and green spaces close to home, prioritising areas with the least access and aiming to get 1 million more children playing in nature close to home
• Support from new coalition will help 100 towns and cities across the UK become great places to live, work and invest, through putting nature and green space at the heart of communities by 2035
• £15.5m invested today to support 40 towns and cities (in 19 urban partnerships) across the UK to improve and create accessible green spaces, streets and neighbourhoods
• First two places receive independent recognition as official Nature Cities and Nature Towns – Birmingham and Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole – for putting nature at the heart of their city plans
• New target to mobilise £1bn investment into the mission to bring nature into towns and cities
• Overall, 10 million people will benefit from today’s announcements, 1 in 6[1] of urban residents, through accessible green spaces across their towns and cities being improved for people, nature, heritage and climate

A new mission to bring nature to towns and cities across the UK has been announced today (Friday 18 July) to benefit millions of people living in urban neighbourhoods in the UK over the next decade.

Nature Towns and Cities is a coalition of organisations united by the ambition to enable everybody to experience nature in their daily lives, particularly those places and communities currently lacking access to quality green space[2].

The first of its kind, this new programme announced by Natural England, National Trust and The National Lottery Heritage Fund aims to help at least 100 places across the UK to become greener, healthier, happier places for people to live and work. Across these 100 towns and cities at least five million more people will gain access to green space a short walk from home, and one million children will have the opportunity to play outdoors in nature every day, as well thousands of existing green spaces being improved for communities and wildlife.

Delivery of Nature Towns and Cities will also be supported in Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland through Natural Resources Wales, Northern Ireland Environment Agency and NatureScot.

Eilish McGuinness, Chief Executive, The National Lottery Heritage Fund said: “I am delighted to announce an investment of £15.5 million which will help 40 towns and cities across the UK better plan their urban nature recovery, connecting people and communities

to their natural environment in the places they live. We have invested over £1bn in regenerating over 900 urban parks and green spaces over the last 30 years, helping nature thrive in towns everywhere – and this exciting initiative, working with partners right across the UK, will continue to build on this investment and give millions of people better access to nature close to home.”

Marian Spain Chief Executive of Natural England said: "Nature helps us to improve our mental and physical wellbeing, mitigate the impacts of climate change and drive green growth through the creation of spaces for people to connect with nature, making better places for people to live, work and invest. “Yet for millions of people in urban areas there is no green space within a 15-minute walk of their home[3]. Natural England research shows the stark inequalities of access to nature for people in disadvantaged urban communities. We are proud to be part of the Nature Towns and Cities project, helping millions of people enjoy nature and inspire communities to take part in nature recovery.”

Hilary McGrady, Director General at the National Trust said: “The National Trust believes that everyone, everywhere should have easy and local access to nature and green spaces. So when 85% of the UK population lives in built up urban areas, it is our duty to reach them, uphold our values and make sure nature is for all.

“Together with close partners, we are launching Nature Towns and Cities, an exciting new programme that will accelerate access to nature for one in six people living in over 100 towns and cities across the UK, from Belfast in Northern Ireland to Portsmouth in England.

“The programme aligns closely to our 10 year aim to end unequal access. By prioritising areas in the greatest need, we aim to help nature, beauty and history spring to life in some of the most nature-deprived places in the country.

“This necessary and targeted support combined with community outreach and excellent resources, will enrich places with green space and contribute to the healthy mind, body and future that people need.”

Kickstarting the programme, forty towns and cities across 19 partnerships[4] will receive grants from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, from Portsmouth to Bradford in England, to Fife in Scotland, Torfaen in Wales, and Belfast in Northern Ireland.

These places have been selected following a rigorous application and assessment process which started last autumn, with work now able to get underway to deliver those plans for people and nature.

The funding will help these places co-design plans with their partners and communities to improve the provision, quality and connectivity of green spaces and nature. These plans could include improving existing parks and green spaces, planting new wildflower meadows, creating new pocket parks and planting more street trees to benefit all those that live there[5].

Cllr Anthony Hunt, Leader of Torfaen County Borough Council in southeast Wales, said: “I am delighted that Torfaen has been awarded funding from Nature Towns and Cities. We want nature to flourish in Torfaen and for more people to experience its many health and well-being benefits. The funding will enable us to work with our communities and partners in

new and innovative ways, so that together we can achieve more and make a real difference to nature recovery and keeping our communities healthy.”

As part of today’s announcement, Birmingham has also been declared the UK’s first official Nature City[6], with Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole collectively named the first Nature Towns.

The designation recognises the local authorities’ commitment with their partners in those places to transform life for urban communities by providing more and better nature and green space. Birmingham’s commitment to place nature at the centre of everyday life is set out in its ambitious City of Nature plan[7], with the idea that access to nature is a right and not a privilege at its heart.

Whilst Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council will work hand-in-hand with partners to build on their work to bring nature to the heart of communities[8], connecting green spaces across the whole landscape, delivering more things to do and ways for people to get involved in neighbourhood green spaces, and partnering with local businesses to bring in crucial funding.

Cllr Majid Mahmood, cabinet member for environment and transport at Birmingham City Council, said: “Through our 25-year City of Nature Plan, we’ve laid out a robust framework for transforming how nature is valued and integrated across Birmingham.

“We're really leading the way in creating and recovering urban nature and are one of the greenest cities in Europe.

“We work with community groups such as Birmingham Tree People to plant trees in inner city areas such as Alum Rock, and in partnership with Open Door Community Foundation and Friends of Seven Streets Park - Balsall Heath to develop pocket parks in their neighbourhoods. These are small but impactful green spaces that bring nature to people’s doorsteps while supporting wellbeing, biodiversity, food growing and community pride.

“One of our focus areas is the River Cole corridor in the heart of East Birmingham, where we aim to improve access to nature for thousands of residents, restoring habitats, enhancing traffic free routes, and creating new spaces for people to connect with the outdoors.”

Cllr Andy Hadley, portfolio holder for climate response, energy and environment at BCP Council, said: “It is fantastic to see our ambitions and innovation recognised at a national level - particularly as we continue to invest in improving access to nature for all our residents - and receiving this recognition will help us to do just that.

“We have incredible green spaces across our three towns and it is so important that we protect them for future generations.

“Our parks operations and countryside teams work brilliantly to maintain and restore our vast natural spaces and this accreditation is a well-deserved recognition of that.”

Both Birmingham and BCP Councils received grant funding and support in 2019 from National Lottery Heritage Fund and National Trust, as part of Future Parks Accelerator [9], a precursor programme to Nature Towns and Cities.

Collectively, the support announced today will provide the proven benefits of spending time every day in nature to over 10 million people; one in six of those living in urban places.

Nature Towns and Cities has also unveiled a new target to mobilise £1bn of investment into greening towns and cities by 2035 from private, philanthropic and public sources, marking the start of plans to grow a much bigger coalition of partners to help achieve the mission across the UK. Efforts will focus initially on raising funds to help official Nature Towns and Nature Cities deliver their plans for people and nature.