Hedgerows set to make a return

Hedgerows look set to take centre stage in Britain’s nature recovery plans after the introduction of incentives that promise to support their revival. Since World War II, hundreds of thousands of hedging miles have vanished. According to Crispin Truman of the CPRE, the Countryside Charity, “they have a huge role to play in dealing with climate change and in boosting biodiversity – they are wonderful habitats for birds, mammals and insects.”

Another advantage, says Paul Hetherington of Buglife, is that, “allied to larger patches of good habitat, they can create functioning wildlife corridors”.

In 2019, the Climate Change Committee recommended extending hedgerows by 40% by 2050. Now, the Government has announced two initiatives that should kickstart the process: the Local Authority Treescapes Fund, which makes £2.7m available in 2021 to plant trees in hedgerows and other green spaces; and the upcoming Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI), which rewards farmers for practices such as planting and managing hedges.

Conservation bodies have welcomed the move, but note that even more needs to be done. “The Local Authority Treescapes Fund is great, but £2.7m? They are spending £27bn on roads,” says Truman.

With regards to the SFI, Megan Gimber of the People’s Trust for Endangered Species adds that: “we have only seen the higher-level summary and hope to see more in June”. In particular, she would like DEFRA to recognise the importance of replanting gaps and rejuvenating and restoring hedges. “We need to see incentives adequate to ensure they are bigger, better and more joined up.”