Habitat creation and restoration towards species recovery

Wavehill led the process and impact evaluation, running longitudinal site visits, interviews, workshops and a value for money assessment. Environment Systems led the ecological assessment as sub-contractor. Wavehill and Environment Systems also developed an approach to assess whether and how project actions contributed to the UK’s statutory habitat target, supporting Defra’s own reporting process through the Biodiversity Indicators. The evaluation built on Wavehill’s earlier work on Green Recovery Challenge Fund Round 2.

Key findings
• 4,800 hectares of habitat benefited from project activity, with delivery accelerating sharply once early delays in permissions and recruitment were resolved
• 197 roles (135.7 FTE) were created or retained across projects, building delivery capacity that outlasted the funded period
• Projects engaged over 13,000 volunteers and 51,000 attendees through practical conservation, training and outreach activity, with participation strengthening as local partnerships developed

The evaluation’s findings and recommendations are expected to inform the design of future nature recovery programmes.

The report is available to read here.