Chester Habitat Bank
- County
- Cheshire
- Local planning authority (LPA)
- Cheshire West and Chester Council
- National Character Area (NCA)
- Shropshire, Cheshire and Staffordshire Plain
- Biodiversity gain sites register number
- BGS-260226001
Biodiversity Units
Very high distinctiveness habitats
- Lowland meadows
High distinctiveness habitats
- Floodplain wetland mosaic and CFGM
- Ponds (priority habitat)
- Reedbeds
- Traditional orchards
- Wet woodland
Medium distinctiveness habitats
- Ditches
- Mixed scrub
- Other neutral grassland
- Other woodland; broadleaved
- Willow scrub
Habitat Bank overview
Thoughtfully placed along the River Gowy, our Chester Habitat Bank is less than five miles from Chester city centre and spreads across more than 135 acres around Mickle Trafford.
This BNG Habitat Bank is specifically designed to encourage an abundance of native flora and fauna through its diverse habitats – including wildflower meadows, mixed native woody scrub, woodland, reedbeds, and ponds.
BNG delivery
An essential part of our Habitat Bank delivery process is the initial assessment of the land. This ensures that our team are maximising potential biodiversity uplift from the outset. We look at each site’s natural features and histories – taking into account soil type and condition, long-term management history, native wildlife, hydrology, existing vegetation, geology, and connectivity across wider landscapes.
For each of our Habitat Banks, we take a baseline using the statutory biodiversity metric – ensuring that we can accurately measure the benefits brought by our nature restoration works over our thirty-year management period.
Coverage
| Neighbouring LPAs |
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Warrington Borough Council
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Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council
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Liverpool City Council
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Shropshire Council
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Halton Borough Council
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Cheshire East Council
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| Neighbouring NCAs |
|---|
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Cannock Chase and Cank Wood
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South West Peak
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Mersey Valley
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Shropshire Hills
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Wirral
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Needwood and South Derbyshire Claylands
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Oswestry Uplands
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Manchester Conurbation
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Potteries and Churnet Valley
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Mid Severn Sandstone Plateau
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Cheshire Sandstone Ridge
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Our vision
Our Chester Habitat Bank provides an excellent location for farmland to transform and lost habitats to be reintroduced. Divided by the railway line connecting Chester and Helsby, the site was largely made up of species-poor grazing land.
We are working closely with the landowner to restore biodiversity and encourage a wealth of wildlife to grow in abundance. We’re also using the farmer’s existing livestock to graze the Habitat Bank sustainably, creating structural variety amongst the habitats – reflecting historic land management practices that supported healthy ecosystems.
With a significant portion of coastal and floodplain grazing marsh which periodically floods from the River Gowy, we are intentionally creating a diverse range of maintained wetland habitats. These will include floodplain wetland mosaic, ditches, and ponds designed for amphibians and birds of special conservation status to thrive.
We are pleased that the public will be able to witness the natural development of this broad space over time by visiting via multiple Public Rights of Way (PRoWs) throughout the Habitat Bank.
Buy BNG Units
Find out the cost and availability of Biodiversity Units from Chester Habitat Bank.
Nearest Habitat Banks
Hoscar Habitat Bank
NCA: Lancashire and Amounderness Plain
Horwich Habitat Bank
NCA: Southern Pennines