Land and Building Management

Land and property owners play a significant role in maintaining and enhancing biodiversity. The appropriate management of designated and non-designated sites – including parks, school grounds, churchyards, estate land, and buildings – can provide extensive habitat for wildlife and create lasting benefits for local communities. Understanding what species and habitats are present is the essential first step towards effective land management, and SBIS data can help.

Practical ideas

• Commission a data search from SBIS to understand what protected and priority species have been recorded on or near your land, and use this to inform your management planning.
• Undertake surveys on sites to determine the presence or absence of priority species, and contribute records back to SBIS to build the county evidence base.
• Engage volunteers in surveys and practical conservation tasks – this increases what can be achieved and builds community connection with local wildlife.
• Assess buildings for their potential to support priority species such as bats, barn owls, swifts, and house sparrows, and incorporate features such as bat and bird boxes into maintenance and new build projects.
• Consider the biodiversity value of green spaces when planning maintenance regimes – sympathetic management of verges, hedges, and open spaces can significantly increase their value for wildlife at little additional cost.
• If you manage land of sufficient ecological interest, consider whether it meets the criteria for County Wildlife Site designation or declaration as a Local Nature Reserve.
• When undertaking development or significant land management changes, consider how Biodiversity Net Gain principles can be applied to deliver measurable improvements for wildlife.

Case study

Ipswich Borough Council and Landseer Park

Over recent years, Landseer Park has been carefully managed by Ipswich Borough Council park rangers, resulting in significant gains for biodiversity and designation as a County Wildlife Site. A large number of priority species have been recorded, including bullfinch, skylark, adder, and slowworm. The rangers built a sound partnership with local volunteer recorders and successfully raised awareness of biodiversity amongst the public by involving them in practical conservation – greatly increasing the impact that a small team can achieve. Working closely with SBIS, the project has clear benefits for both people and wildlife whilst helping the council meet its obligations under the Environment Act 2021.