Telford and Wrekin Council is significantly increasing its wildflower meadow provision as part of an ambitious push to boost local biodiversity and enhance the borough’s green spaces for both wildlife and residents.
New wildflower habitats are being sown and existing meadows improved in a drive to create a richer, more resilient natural environment. This work builds on the 692,000m² of established meadows – space already equivalent to 64 football pitches.
Boosting Biodiversity
The Council is enhancing a total of 47,249m² of land this season—the size of approximately seven additional football pitches—through sowing new areas, overseeding existing ones, and adapting meadow management practices. These areas form crucial parts of the local green corridor, helping wildlife move and supporting nature recovery.
Councillor Carolyn Healy, Telford & Wrekin Council Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods, Planning and Sustainability, highlighted the vital role these spaces play.
“These meadows are more than just beautiful spaces – they’re lifelines for wildlife. On a summer’s day, one acre of wildflower meadow can contain up to three million flowers, producing a kilogram of nectar, enough to support 96,000 honeybees,” she said.
“By expanding and improving these habitats, we’re helping pollinators, birds and small mammals thrive, while also creating greener, more resilient spaces for our communities to enjoy.”
The habitats are carefully managed to allow species to flower and set seed, providing shelter and new food sources for a variety of creatures, including butterflies, moths, bees, beetles, small mammals, amphibians, and birds. Late-season mowing helps spread seeds, ensuring the meadows, found along verges, in nature reserves, and in parks, flourish year after year.
Partnerships and Community Action
The initiative is benefitting from crucial support from external partners. National insect charity Buglife is sponsoring £3,000 worth of seeding and cultivation, while Fujitsu has pledged £1,000 for wildflower seed.
Local ‘Friends’ volunteer groups are playing a hands-on role in managing sites and collecting seed for redistribution.
Seeding is already taking place in parks such as Bowring, Hartshill, and Dale End. Other community-led projects include new planting in Dawley Park and the sowing of Yellow Rattle in Leegomery, with support from the Friends of Hurley Brook.
Marion Versluijs, a volunteer with the Friends of Hurley Brook, explained their efforts:
“The Friends are keen to make the woodland along the Hurley Brook more attractive to wildlife. We have been planting Yellow Rattle which keeps grass in check, so wildflowers can thrive which in turn supports insects, birds and bats. We are working in partnership with the Council which has supplied the seeds and we hope to see this patch of grass become a beautiful wildflower meadow next spring.”
Seed mixes are being tailored to local conditions, with sunnier spots featuring species like Red Clover, Field Scabious, and Yellow Rattle, and shaded areas receiving Foxglove, Campion, and Oxeye Daisy. The Council anticipates these enhanced areas will put on a colourful show next year.
This work forms a key part of the Council’s wider commitment to protect, care, and invest in the local environment for a better borough.