Free ponds for landowners in South Yorkshire

Since receiving funding from Natural England 2 years ago, Wildscapes CIC have installed over 100 free ponds for landowners across Yorkshire and are looking to install another 25 this coming winter.

The Aim

The work forms part of the Natural England led District Level licensing scheme for great crested newts (GCN).  This new scheme to South Yorkshire means that when a proposed development is likely to impact on GCN habitat, developers now have the option of a quicker and simpler alternative to the traditional GCN mitigation licence.  Since its launch earlier this year, the scheme has not only benefited developers in terms of certainty on costs and timescales, but has provided multiple new ponds for the benefit of GCN.

As the habitat delivery partner for the region, Wildscapes CIC aim to create new ponds in the most suitable locations to allow the newts to thrive.  This is done through consultation with Natural England’s identified strategic opportunity areas, local knowledge and GCN records.  Ponds are constructed within close proximity to known GCN populations and ideally in between several different GCN populations to promote breeding.  All these ponds are maintained and monitored by Wildscapes CIC in South Yorkshire for 25 years.

The Land Management team have a wealth of expertise in pond creation and restoration, having completed over 50 pond projects during 2020-21 alone. Experienced in working with national bodies, local authorities and private landowners, the team have delivered numerous ponds as part of Natural England’s District Level Licencing initiative in addition to supporting local landscaping projects and biodiversity enhancement strategies.

Fully funded by Natural England, landowners are not asked to contribute financially to the pond creation/ restoration (or suitable livestock fencing if required), but simply to take a few basic measures to protect the habitat quality of the pond.  The need for suitable land will be ongoing and interested parties are encouraged to contact Wildscapes CIC to discuss potential sites for consideration.

Pond Loss

• 50% of the UK’s ponds were lost during the 20th century, whilst the majority of our remaining ponds are classed as being in a poor state.
• Many ponds are man-mad