Nature South West has been established to drive large-scale nature recovery across the South West, backed by £250,000 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund.

The Nature South West Board includes senior representatives from Natural England, National Landscapes, the RSPB, the Wildlife Trust, the National Trust, the NFU, Local Nature Partnerships, the Environment Agency and Lloyds Bank.

Rebecca Burton, south west regional director of the National Trust, speaking on behalf of the Nature South West board, said: “We set up Nature South West because we believe investment in nature and investment in the economy must go hand-in-hand.

Nature South West has been established to drive large-scale nature recovery across the South West, backed by £250,000 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund. (Image: Chris Gomersall)

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“Our goal is not to compete with the many brilliant projects and partnerships already existing, but to help connect and support them.

“We believe the South West can lead the way in showing how nature and economy can grow together.”

The partnership will focus on three priority areas—flourishing coastlines, clean and healthy rivers, and staying connected—where nature-based solutions can deliver the greatest economic, community, and environmental benefits.

Building on proven successes such as the UK’s first ‘super’ National Nature Reserve in Dorset and the Connecting the Culm flood management project, Nature South West aims to attract greater investment and move from “islands of success” to a joined-up, regional approach.

The South West is home to more than 1,000km of coastline and over 30 per cent of the region lies within protected landscapes.

Key industries—tourism, farming, fishing, and clean energy—depend on a healthy natural environment, but progress in nature recovery has been limited by complexity, a lack of resources, and insufficient scale.

Stuart McLeod, Director of England – London & South at The National Lottery Heritage Fund, said: “Nature South West is exactly the kind of ambitious, collaborative approach we’re proud to support thanks to National Lottery players.

Nature South West has been established to drive large-scale nature recovery across the South West, backed by £250,000 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund. (Image: Sam Rose)

“By bringing partners together, this initiative will help nature’s recovery, delivering lasting benefits for people, places, and the environment.

“From healthier rivers to more resilient coastlines, it shows how working together can turn shared ambition into meaningful action for the South West’s natural heritage.”

Existing coastal landscape partnerships, such as those on the Lizard in Cornwall and in Purbeck, Dorset, have shown the benefits of large-scale, collaborative nature restoration.

Nature South West now plans to create a connected coastal wildbelt nature network to position the south west as the UK’s leading region for coastal nature recovery.