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The Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Boundary Variation Project Consultation Analysis Report was published in July. The boundary changes affect the Betchworth and Buckland area (see map below). 40 responses were received from Betchworth and Mole Valley area to the proposed boundary changes. Over 90% were supportive of the extension but about 80% of responses were yes but offering alternative boundary suggestions. The only addition to the proposed boundary in the 4Bs area is the inclusion of a small sliver of land east of Shag Brook. 93% of respondents agreed that it is appropriate to classify the proposed extension as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and 91% of respondents believed the area contained within the proposed boundary (shown in green in the map below) should be designated as part of the Surrey Hills AONB / Surrey Hills National Landscape. Living immediately west of the western boundary of the proposed change, in an area that I believe is more beautiful than the area to the east that lies within the boundary: it all seems very arbitrary to me. The Report and Maps can be accessed here 
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 Our latest Gardening for Biodiversity talk, given by local ecologist Paul Ritchie on the theme of ‘Creating Garden-Scale Woodland Habitats,’ attracted a good audience from across the 4Bs. Drawing on his own gardening for nature project and over 40 years experience of woodland management he shared his approach to creating garden scale woodland habitats.  A key take-away was that woodland gardening is NOT about planting a woodland in your garden. Rather, it’s about understanding how woodland ecology works in the UK and applying those principles to your garden planting. By understanding the ecology we are more likely to create a healthy woodland habitat within which wildlife can flourish. One of the most important principles is layering. By using trees, shrubs and other plants we can fill a 3 dimensional space with plants that will thrive at all levels. He also offered advice on the native trees, shrubs and other plants we should consider when creating a garden with a small scale woodland habitat. Pauls powerpoint slides are posted below together with a recording of his talk
The second meeting of the 4Bs Biodiversity Forum was held on October 9th at the Surrey Wildlife Trust Education Centre, Nower Wood. The Forum contains representatives from the 4Bs Parish and Neighbourhood Councils, Mole Valley District Council, Surrey County Council, Surrey Wildlife Trust, National Trust, Surrey Hills National Landscape, and significant Landowners. The group has been formed to evaluate the idea of a Biodiversity Park for the 4Bs area.
In August-September Forum members had participated in a consultation exercise aimed at evaluating the proposal for a Biodiversity Park. The consultation showed less than unanimous support for the idea of designating the area as a “Park”, but agreement that cooperation across the 4Bs area would help in conserving wildlife at a landscape scale. In the interests of inclusivity an alternative idea had been proposed namely a Biodiversity Initiative. Taking the initiative is about people and organisations voluntarily deciding to take ownership for a problem or opportunity and working together to make something positive happen. The Forum agreed that 4Bs Biodiversity Initiative was the right concept around which to develop a network of people and organisations who cared enough about nature to give some of their time and energy to participate in activities that support nature recovery. At the May meeting of the Forum it had been suggested that an Inventory of existing activities and projects relating to biodiversity across the 4Bs area would be a useful asset. Simon Humphreys from the Biodiversity Initiative Team had used the idea to start creating a map-based inventory using the Google Maps platform. Simon gave a live demonstration at the October meeting and it stimulated many questions and suggestions from Forum members which will be used in the next stage of development. In the final part of the meeting, team member Simon Fellowes posed the what next? question. Forum members grouped into Parish and District Councils, Environmental NGO’s and Landowners, were invited to identify 3 priority actions, linked to the aims for the initiative, that could form the basis of an emergent plan of action. An important part of the process was to identify who might own the action. The question of what resources are needed to achieve the aims of the initiative is clearly important and possible funding sources will be explored going forward. But it was also recognised by members that much can be achieved with relatively little financial resource by people who are motivated, resourceful and knowledgeable. Finding the advocates, enthusiasts and experts who are willing to invest time and energy is often the biggest challenge, rather than funding. We celebrate the progress made in building a network of nature enthusiasts, activists and experts through the 4Bs Nature WhatsApp Group. The meeting only lasted 2 hours but it covered a lot of ground. Once again the meeting demonstrated the value in bringing people together to learn from each other, stimulate conversation and ideas, and create better understanding and new working relationships through which new and unexpected things will surely emerge. The Forum will meet again on March 5th 2025 exactly one year after the project began. The ultimate goal of the project is to bring people and organisations together to see if they can find a way to build an alliance and practical partnership with the residents and communities of the 4Bs to help nature and improve biodiversity. At the final meeting of the Forum under the current one year project to develop the concept, the decision will be made by members to either continue the initiative as it is currently configured, or adapt its configuation (perhaps with fewer or more members) or to close it in its current form. But one thing is sure – things will never be the same again in the 4Bs. A new movement for nature has been started. Guest Post by Paul Ritchie Sorubus Learning I wanted to share with you some thinking, which is born out of 30 years experience of open space management and 40 years conserving woodlands and ancient trees. Anyone who has attended one of my tree courses knows that I'm fiercely opposed to most tree planting schemes in the UK, such as Surrey County Councils plans e.g. Surrey County Council has set an ambitious target of planting 1.2 million trees in Surrey by 2030. That is one tree for every resident in the county. This is a totally riduculous target because using traditional UK tree planting methodology there just isn't the space for that many mature trees! Experience has shown me that most UK tree planting schemes fail with a disgustingly high failure rate because of a lack of understanding of tree biology and basic ecological knowledge in those planning and planting trees. This is compounded by the fact that often such schemes and forestry projects are delivered on green spaces that feature other biodiversity interest such as species-rich grassland, heath and moorland. Colleagues from my previous role as Head Ranger of Ashtead Common NNR have shown me using readily available mapping tools that it's impossible to plant 1.2 million trees in Surrey using current established methods. So not being one to being one to give up I've done some research and would like to suggest two opportunities to tackle the key issues of a lack of space, tree mortality and lack of natural biodiversity. The first should not be a surprise as many conservation organisations already recommend this for improving biodiversity and amenity value of green spaces... hedge planting, which requires native fruit and nut bearing trees and shrubs to be planted in a double row of planting with about 6-8 trees/shrubs every metre. Please see attached guidance.  The second may not be familiar to you and is named after the Japanese botanist Dr Akira Miyawaki, the method involves careful soil preparation and densely planting a range of native woodland plants that are beneficial to wildlife on an area usually around the size of a tennis court. This method is one of the most effective tree planting methods and creates biodiverse 'wooded' habitat quickly with trees and shrubs growing much faster with higher survival rates (95% vs 75% in current methods at their best) with higher biodiversity recorded in shorter time spans. Please see my second attachement.  I strongly believe that the best way forward for local Parish Councils and their communities is to adopt one or both of the above recommended approaches to responding to climate change and impending crash of biodiversity in UK and Surrey. It is a more cost effective approach with enhanced outcomes for wildlife and people, which can help engage local people in their own hedgerow and/or 'Miyawaki Woodland' perhaps renamed Heritage or Coronation Woodland to win over residents, landowners and funders. There are plenty of existing funding streams for hedgerow and woodland planting in UK.
Paul is a biologist and nature activist. He is contributing to the Gardening for Biodiversity community project.. His next talk is on the subject of woodland management. GARDENING FOR BIODIVERSITY TALK Thursday 17 October ‘Creating Garden-Scale Woodland Habitats’ Paul Ritchie Betchworth Village Hall 7.30-8.30pm Earlier this year Paul Ritchie inspired nearly 40 people to have a go at creating new habitats for wildlife in their gardens across the 4Bs. In this talk he will draw upon 30 years of experience in open space management and 40 years conserving woodlands and ancient trees, to suggest ways in which we might create small-scale woodland habitats in our own gardens. The talk will consider 'forest gardening' as a method of making space for nature, growing food and creating a restful haven for people ... a true ARK. To reserve a place please email [email protected]. This Gardening for Biodiversity Talks are for residents of Buckland, Betchworth, Brockham and Box Hill Re-Betchworth's Applefest was a lively affair this year with several hundred visitors during the afternoon to watch the annual pressing of apples. The 4Bs Biodiversity Initiative was invited to share what we are doing and Bekki Morgan hosted a table with posters, postcards and free packets of seed for our 1 square metre of wildflower meadow campaign. She also displayed in maginfting jars, a wonderful selection of insect skeletons she had found in her garden. These were a fantastic hit with the children many of whom had not seen a dragonfly close up. As a result several new members were added to the Nature WhatsApp Group and to our Gardening for Biodiversity project. As a bonus we were interviewed by Peter Stewart who is producer and presenter of the Planet Reigate Podcast https://theplanetreigatepodcast.com/ Thanks to everyone who said hello and to Bekki for a great show.  |
4Bs Nature Group BlogThis blog is maintained by the 4Bs Biodiversity Initiative Team. Its purpose is to provide brief updates of activities and encourage the sharing of experiences and learning. We welcome guests and contributions from members of the 4Bs WhatsApp Nature Group and wider community. To contribute a post please email the editor at biodiversityinititiative1 @gmail.com PagesArchives
July 2025
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