Member Article

Hampshire housebuilder boosts wildlife with more nature friendly housing

Leading Hampshire housebuilder and wildlife charity RSPB are launching a £1m initiative supporting communities to help nature thrive.

Barratt Homes and David Wilson Homes, which is bringing new homes to the area including at Kings Chase in Romsey, has partnered up with the RSPB to become more kind towards local habitats.

By 2023 the five-star housebuilder has pledged to prioritise wildlife on all of its new developments by creating dedicated space for local biodiversity conservation, installing a range of wildlife friendly features and following expert RSPB advice. Beyond 2023 the goal is to have at least 10% more wildlife habitats in and around developments, delivering a clear biodiversity net gain across the country.

Within two years every new development will be provided with the guidance and tools to include wildlife friendly features into its public open spaces including plans to create climate resilient landscapes. More trees will be planted each year and it is transitioning to become peat free. Every new showhome garden will follow strict RSPB guidance which prioritises wildlife through specialist planting and landscaping, with at least 50% of the gardens to receive special RSPB commendations.

Many of the new developments will also feature more hedgehog highways and swift nesting sites. Back in 2018 Barratt became the first housebuilder to target 10 cities around the country with swift nesting bricks developed with the RSPB. Having already installed hundreds of the swift bricks now its goal is to install several thousand around the country.

As part of the ongoing partnership, Barratt is also investing £1m in an exciting new project with the RSPB to support people to help nature thrive in their gardens, balconies and eventually their community greenspaces.

Launching in the spring of this year, and called Nature on Your Doorstep, the project will deliver the resources, connections and inspiration that will empower people to create their own havens for wildlife where they live.

The project will focus on the development of digital resources and an online community that brings people together to share their stories, tips and advice on the best ways to look after nature near them.

With local nature habitats in serious trouble and 40 million birds having vanished from the skies in the last half century, every community has a role to play in tackling the ecological and climate emergency. The actions taken for nature by individuals or communities together, such as welcoming wildlife into gardens or greenspace, will make a really big difference.

Jon Green, Managing Director at Barratt and David Wilson Homes’ Southampton division, said: “As the country’s leading national sustainable housebuilder looking after nature is integral to the work that we continuously do through our partnership with RSPB. This is why we are committing to boosting wildlife and building nature friendly developments. And, through the exciting new £1m project with the RSPB, we look forward to developing new digital resources that will connect and inspire homeowners to help nature on their doorstep.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Barratt Homes .