Biodiversity and Greenspaces

How Cambridgeshire County Council strategies align for nature recovery

Cambridgeshire is home to a rich network of green spaces that support both people and wildlife. Local Nature Reserves provide accessible places for communities to enjoy nature, learn, and volunteer, while Nature Conservation Sites safeguard habitats of local, national, and international importance from chalk pits and wetlands to protected road verges. Alongside these, the council works to protect and provide green space through its Biodiversity Strategy, ensuring landscapes, woodlands, and waterways are managed for recreation, wellbeing, and biodiversity.

Together, these initiatives form the foundation for a healthier natural environment. Building on this, the council’s three key strategies set out how vision, action, and spatial planning come together to drive nature recovery across the county.

Biodiversity Strategy - The core framework

This strategy sets the county’s vision for biodiversity, embedding it into all council services and decision-making. It identifies priority habitats and species, key threats, and opportunities for enhancement, aligning with national policy and local initiatives. It serves as the foundation for all biodiversity-related actions, including greenspace management, planning, and infrastructure.

Tree and Woodland Strategy - The core framework

Focused on expanding, protecting, and improving tree and woodland cover, this strategy applies the ‘right tree in the right place’ principle to ensure ecological and landscape compatibility. It enhances biodiversity by creating habitats, improving connectivity, and supporting ecosystem services such as carbon storage and flood mitigation.

Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS) - The spatial plan

A statutory requirement under the Environment Act 2021, the LNRS identifies priority habitats and species, maps areas with the greatest restoration potential, and sets out targeted actions to achieve biodiversity net gain. It underpins the county’s ‘Doubling Nature’ ambition by coordinating efforts across sectors and providing the spatial framework for implementing other strategies.

Integrated Approach

Together, these strategies embed nature recovery across council operations from planning and infrastructure to education and community engagement.