National Trust buys 193 acres in Sefton
A new forest is coming to Lunt, now that the conservation charity has acquired a series of unused agricultural fields from the local authority.
The National Trust is planning to create new woodland, wetland, and grassland areas on the 193 acres, with an eye towards boosting the biodiversity in the area. It is hoped that a variety of animals will opt to live in the new habitats, including red squirrels.
“Whilst the landscape around Lunt looks quite green, much of it is private farmland and not currently accessible,” said Kate Martin, a lead ranger for the National Trust.
“Securing this land gives us a brilliant opportunity to create more diverse habitat, enabling nature to flourish in the area,” she continued. “We know that people feel much more connected to nature when they can get out into it close to home, and that connectedness makes a huge difference to health and wellbeing.”
The fields, outlined in red, sit on either side of the village of Lunt. Credit: Google Earth and council documents
Planting of the new forest would commence later this year, thanks to funds from Mersey Forest’s award from the government’s Trees for Climate programme.
“The Mersey Forest team are excited that a project like this could be funded through a Trees for Climate grant,” said Paul Nolan, director of Mersey Forest.
“Lunt has long been a key strategic site identified in the Mersey Forest plan. This is a chance to bring the many benefits of woodland creation to Sefton, for communities, climate, and nature.”
The benefits of the woodland were a deciding factor in Sefton Council’s decision to sell the land, according to Leader Cllr Marion Atkinson.
She referenced a council report about the proposed sale, stating “The report presented to cabinet showed the sale would have a positive impact on biodiversity of the area, contribute to increasing the ability of the area to capture carbon from new woodland planting and wetland creation, as well as offering new access opportunities to local people in Sefton.”
The price of the land was not disclosed. The Lunt site would be the second National Trust location in Sefton – the charity also owns a nature reserve in Formby.
