West of England B-Lines

The Vision

To create a network of B-Lines linking wildflower-rich areas across the West of England from the west to the east, and from the north to the south, linking the Cotswolds with the Mendips, cities to the countryside, and the coast to the hills.

The Story…

Between April 2014 and March 2016 Buglife and AWT achieved the following:

• AWT Grassland Restoration Team (GRT) volunteers have worked to restore 123.9ha of grassland habitat.
• AWTs My Wild City volunteers and Bristol City Council volunteers have also contributed towards a further 15.6 ha of grassland restoration within the West of England B-Lines network.
  4.43ha of wildflower grassland have been created by sowing seed and plug planting.
• 144 volunteer task days have been held on 32 sites to undertake practical restoration and creation work such as scrub clearance, weed management, scything, raking, wildflower seed collecting and sowing, and plug planting
• 90 individuals have volunteered with the project as part of our Grassland Restoration Team. 27 further individuals, from other groups also contributed to the restoration work (these include Natural England volunteers, UWE occupational therapy students and Westfield Farm Woofers)
• 743 days of volunteer time have been contributed by the GRT volunteers
• Advice given to landowners on site management and management plans provided.
• 4 workshops have been delivered providing information, support and advice to landowners and community groups.

Buglife and AWT received additional funding to continue working with landowners, partners and local groups to enhance connectivity across the West of England for pollinators and wildlife after the completion of this project.