The Wyescapes project brings together 49 farmers and land managers working collaboratively across an area two and a half times the size of Hereford city. The plans aim to restore wildlife habitats, improve river health, reduce flood and drought impacts and support sustainable food production on climate-resilient, thriving farms.

The development phase has been led by Herefordshire Rural Hub, working with partners Herefordshire Wildlife Trust, Herefordshire Meadows, and The Wye and Usk Foundation.

Max Eckert, Programme Manager at Herefordshire Rural Hub, said:
“This project shows what is possible when farmers and partners work together at landscape scale. Across the Wye and Lugg valleys we’ve identified thousands of actions to restore wildlife habitats, protect soils and support river recovery — while keeping farms productive and resilient for the future.
“Taken together, these changes could make a real difference to the health of our river corridors for generations to come.”

The final submission covers 5,012 hectares of land where active project interventions are proposed — equivalent to 12,385 acres or around 50 km?. That is roughly two and a half times the size of Hereford city, four times the open-access area of the Malvern Hills, or 100 times the size of Queenswood Country Park.

Across this agricultural landscape, land managers have identified major opportunities to restore habitats and enhance nature and river-friendly farming, including:

• 2,000 acres of new floodplain meadow and species-rich grassland
• 330 acres of new woodland
• 220 acres of new wetlands
• 1,385 acres of arable land reverting to grassland
• 3,000 acres of arable land managed for improved soil health and climate resilience
• 22 kilometres of new hedgerows
• 775 acres of buffers, margins and flower-rich strips
• 660 acres of wood pasture, parkland and orchards

Thirty farms and land holdings have also put forward proposals to improve public access, including new permissive paths and better accessibility for a wider range of people.

For local communities, the project aims to create new opportunities to experience and connect with the landscape. Plans include inclusive engagement events, volunteering opportunities and a schools’ programme enabling Herefordshire pupils to visit local farms and learn more about sustainable food production and nature.

Mark Wood, Chair of the Wyescapes Board and Farm Manager, Peter Clay Farms, said:
“These plans represent nearly two years of work and an enormous amount of collaboration between farmers, land managers and local partners. Everyone involved cares deeply about the future of our rivers and our farms, and this proposal shows what can be achieved when we work together.”

If approved, the project would run for 30 years, delivering long-term benefits for nature, farming and local communities across the Wye and Lugg river corridors. Defra will now review the plans as part of a detailed assurance process. If successful, formal negotiations on an implementation agreement would follow. A final decision is not expected until later this summer at the earliest.

Kate Speke-Adams, Director of Herefordshire Rural Hub, said:
“Farmers across the Wye and Lugg valleys are navigating a period of huge change — from more frequent flooding to the rapid shift away from traditional farm support payments. Wyescapes shows what becomes possible when farmers come together at landscape scale to design solutions that work for their businesses as well as the environment. Our role at Herefordshire Rural Hub has been to champion those farm businesses and help turn their ambition into a practical plan for the future. The urgency to act in this catchment is clear, and this proposal demonstrates that farmers are ready to be part of the solution.”

Laura Beasley, Nature Recovery manager at Herefordshire Wildlife Trust said:

"For us at Herefordshire Wildlife Trust, it has been a pleasure to be a key contributor in the development of the Wyescapes plans, and a great opportunity to work closely with likeminded partners towards long-term, landscape scale change benefiting people, farming and nature, across our county.

The Herefordshire Wildife Trust team delivered the Land Management Plan alongside Herefordshire Rural Hub, Wye & Usk Foundation and Herefordshire Meadows, designing plans with each landowner that would aid their business sustainability, the community and help nature to flourish.  

As a nature focused charity, we brought expertise in habitat and species surveying, establishing a baseline against which changes in habitat quality and quantity and the benefits to key species such as birds and pollinators will be measured over the 30 years of implementation.

This will not be the end of our involvement in the project as have also committed 158ha of reserves land to the project where we will be (for example) creating scrapes, reedbeds and buffers, and involved in what we hope will be a thriving community engagement program, connecting greater numbers of schools, volunteers and the public to our reserves.  

The project has the potential to significantly benefit Herefordshire, we hope to see the plans accepted by DEFRA and look forward to seeing the impact that the project throughout implementation.