{"id":470770,"date":"2026-03-12T03:24:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-12T03:24:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/470770\/"},"modified":"2026-03-12T03:24:09","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T03:24:09","slug":"old-down-in-basingstoke-to-get-local-nature-reserve-status","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/470770\/","title":{"rendered":"Old Down in Basingstoke to get local nature reserve status"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\n  Plans are underway to designate Old Down in southern Basingstoke as a local nature reserve, following a decision by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basingstokegazette.co.uk\/topics\/basingstoke-and-deane-borough-council\/?ref=au\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council<\/a>\u2019s Cabinet on March 10.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n  The council has placed Old Down at the top of its priority list for LNR status, building on a pledge made in December to advance environmental protection for the area.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n  Councillor Chris Tomblin, cabinet member for climate and ecological emergency, said: &#8220;Starting this work is a positive step towards giving Old Down the additional long-term protection it deserves in a way that benefits local people and our wildlife.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n  <img   width=\"100%\"\/>Old Down in Basingstoke (Image: Google Maps)\n<\/p>\n<p>\n  &#8220;As it follows soon after our decision last month to make Little Pen Wood, in the Highclere area, a local nature reserve, it highlights our commitment to work quickly to safeguard more of the borough\u2019s important natural habitats now and for the future.&#8221;\n<\/p>\n<p>\n  Already recognised as a site of importance for nature conservation (SINC), Old Down is managed by the council\u2019s rangers and grounds maintenance teams in partnership with the Old Down Wildlife Group and Natural Basingstoke.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n  The LNR designation would strengthen protections for the site, support habitat restoration, and promote biodiversity.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n  It would also encourage community engagement through environmental education and enjoyment of the area.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n  Day-to-day activities like dog walking, running, and cycling would still be permitted under the new designation.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n  The process to formally declare an LNR typically takes around 18 months.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n  It involves consultation with Natural England as well as nearby residents and community groups.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n  Protecting the natural environment remains a key priority for the council, aligning with its 2021 ecological emergency pledge and the biodiversity strategy it adopted two years ago.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n  There\u2019s more information about Basingstoke and Deane\u2019s 11 local nature reserves at <a href=\"http:\/\/www.basingstoke.gov.uk\/local-nature-reserves\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">www.basingstoke.gov.uk\/local-nature-reserves<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Plans are underway to designate Old Down in southern Basingstoke as a local nature reserve, following a decision&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":333069,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[1397,90,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-470770","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-environment","8":"tag-environment","9":"tag-science","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/470770","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=470770"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/470770\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/333069"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=470770"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=470770"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=470770"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}