Hartlepool Habitat Bank

County: Durham
Local planning authority (LPA): Hartlepool Borough Council
National Character Area (NCA): Durham Magnesian Limestone Plateau
Biodiversity gain sites register number: BGS-090725003

Birds-eye render of Hartlepool Habitat Bank before restoration

Very high distinctiveness habitats

Lowland meadows

High distinctiveness habitats

Ponds (priority habitat)
Traditional orchards

Medium distinctiveness habitats

Mixed scrub
Other neutral grassland
Species-rich native hedgerow

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Habitat Bank overview

A stone’s throw from the coastline, the Hartlepool Habitat Bank lies across nearly thirty-five acres in the village of Hart. The space offers a fantastic opportunity for us to create and enhance habitats, including native hedgerows and expansive wildflower meadows. We hope to encourage significant uplifts in biodiversity over the next three decades.

BNG delivery

At every Habitat Bank, we always look at the land to determine what can be achieved from the very start. Our biodiversity experts assess the soil, wildlife, vegetation, geology, hydrology, management history, and connectivity across the local landscape.

We take a baseline for each Habitat Bank using the statutory biodiversity metric. We carefully select the best possible habitats for us to establish so we can deliver and demonstrate measurable biodiversity gains over time.

Neighbouring LPAs
Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council
Durham County Council
Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council

Neighbouring NCAs
Tyne and Wear Lowlands
Tees Lowlands
Durham Coalfield Pennine Fringe

Eye-level render of Hartlepool Habitat Bank showing new wildflower meadows being grazed by native cattle, with a neighbouring housing estate in the background

Our vision

Since our local ecologist first visited the site in spring 2023, we’ve been working in collaboration with the landowner to create a transformative space for nature across the existing farmed fields, home to sheep and cattle.

To establish habitats for a variety of plant and animal species to thrive, we’ll be creating an area of mixed scrubland to offer wildlife an effective transitional zone to move from the nearby woodland and across the site.

Hartlepool Habitat Bank already has a special area for nesting lapwings and the surrounding area is home to several notable and protected species, and we hope that our new habitats will help them grow in abundance. This includes great crested newts, skylarks, brown hares, dingy skipper butterflies, grasshopper warblers and buff-tailed bumblebees.

We’ll also be creating a traditional orchard – featuring locally characteristic fruit trees – and establishing seven new ponds amongst the vast grassland. By creating shallow ponds within the flood zone along Padbury Brook, we hope to encourage natural flood management – something that can really increase the resilience of the land.