Wildlife trust secures 600-acre landmark site

A wildlife trust is celebrating after it was gifted 600 acres of land, the largest piece of land it has ever secured.

The site at Eyam Moor - which covers an area equivalent to about 375 football pitches in the Wild Peak - is crossed by a number of footpaths and will be free for the public to visit, while being managed by Derbyshire Wildlife Trust.

The trust said the new site would form part of a wildlife corridor spanning more than 1,000 acres and encompasses a variety of habitats.

Joanna Hill, Wild Peak programme manager for the trust, said the site was "very kindly" gifted by the previous landowners, who wished to remain anonymous.

"We're truly grateful to them. What a unique opportunity for us, you know, we're privileged to become the stewards of this landscape for years to come," Hill added.

Earlier this year the trust raised more than £1m to purchase a site at Middleton Moor, which will be used for a rewilding project.

Hill said: "What we really want to do is restore those natural processes on site [at Eyam Moor] and enhance this site back to its absolute best version of itself.

"It's a huge store of carbon which is clearly really really important in our fight against climate change and it holds water and prevents run-off, which is usually important in times of flooding."

Speaking about the future of the moor, the landowners said: "There is a growing sense of enthusiasm and momentum around Derbyshire Wildlife Trust's bold new vision for nature and people in the county.

"We are proud to be part of this ambitious new chapter in their work, helping to create space for wildlife to flourish and reconnecting habitats across the Wild Peak.

"This land has great beauty and potential, and we are confident that in the trust's hands it will provide a lasting legacy for nature and people."

Rachel Bennett, director of wilder landscapes and wilder communities at the trust, said: "It's really important that landscapes become much more resilient as we see our climate is changing.

"We need to see landscapes that are resilient to those extremes in temperatures, extremes in weather conditions."

The site will be a public right of way, and Bennett added: "We want people to come and experience being in nature-rich spaces and get all the benefits from being in nature.

"It's really good for our wellbeing, it's really good for our mental health, it's really good for our physical health."

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