Chester Habitat Bank

County: Cheshire
Local planning authority (LPA): Cheshire West and Chester Council
National Character Area (NCA): Shropshire, Cheshire and Staffordshire Plain

Biodiversity Units available:

Very high distinctiveness habitats

Lowland meadows

High distinctiveness habitats

Reedbeds
Wet woodland
Traditional orchard
Ponds (priority habitat)
Floodplain wetland mosaic and CFGM

Medium distinctiveness habitats

Ditches
Mixed scrub
Willow scrub
Other neutral grassland
Other woodland; broadleaved

Buy Biodiversity Units

Habitat Bank overview

Thoughtfully placed along the River Gowy, our Chester Habitat Bank is less than five miles from the city centre and spreads across roughly 50 hectares near to 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

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.

Biodiversity Units from this Habitat Bank are ready to purchase now, subject to availability. Provided alongside expert planning support, these Biodiversity Units offer an effective local off-site BNG solution for the Cheshire West and Chester LPA and the Shropshire, Cheshire and Staffordshire Plain NCA.

Coverage

Adjacent LPAs	Adjacent NCAs
Wirral Council	Wirral
Shropshire Council	Mersey Valley
Liverpool City Council	Shropshire Hills
Cheshire East Council	South West Peak
Halton Borough Council	Oswestry Uplands
Warrington Borough Council	Manchester Conurbation
	Cheshire Sandstone Ridge
	Manchester Pennine Fringe
	Potteries and Churnet Valley
	Mid Severn Sandstone Plateau
	Cannock Chase and Cank Wood
	Needwood and South Derbyshire Claylands

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.