Planning authorities

Ensuring the true benefits of biodiversity net gain are delivered locally.

We are establishing a growing network of large-scale nature recovery sites in every local planning authority (LPA) area in England. These Habitat Banks are raising the high-integrity Biodiversity Units required by developers to meet their biodiversity net gain (BNG) obligations and ensure robust, long-term planning compliance.

Our Habitat Banks are not only fulfilling BNG legislation, but they are also supporting local nature recovery strategies (LNRS), sustainable house building, economic growth, job creation, and the cultivation of thousands of acres of diverse green spaces for communities to enjoy.

Our Habitat Banks

Designed by England's leading ecologists, our gold standard Habitat Banks deliver the best possible outcomes for nature off-site. They are not isolated pockets of biodiversity, they are part of broader, interconnected systems of recovery – creating essential wildlife corridors that give key species vital opportunities to travel, interact, and build abundance.

Through close collaboration with landowners, LPAs, Local Nature Partnerships, local communities, and other key stakeholders, each Habitat Bank is co-designed to achieve the specific nature recovery priorities and broader environmental goals of the local area. These goals may encompass a diverse range of objectives, from flood mitigation and carbon capture to improvement of air and water quality.

Funding

Our Habitat Banks are forward funded through sustainable investment to secure effective delivery for the full 30-year term.

This gives planners and developers the confidence that all biodiversity net gain obligations will be met under all circumstances. To support the LPA, we provide them with annual funding to act as overseers of the Habitat Bank, giving them the authority to hold us accountable for project delivery.

Broad impact

Located where communities live and work many of our Habitat Banks include public rights of way, offering incredible green spaces for people to immerse themselves in, whenever they choose, completely free of charge.

Working in partnership with local landowners, we diversify incomes and safeguard livelihoods with land and management payment significantly higher than other schemes will offer. With 30-years of guaranteed income, we are already providing meaningful, long-term financial security for many.

We establish Habitat Banks on low-yielding land, so as not to disrupt food production, and fund the transition to sustainable agriculture by empowering the existing workforce with innovative conservation grazing techniques. These techniques can increase crop yields, reducing the requirement for intensive fertilisers and harmful pesticides.

Create a Habitat Bank in your area

With over a hundred sites currently in development and hundreds more to follow in the coming years, we are well on our way to establishing at least one Habitat Bank in every LPA area in England.

To talk to our team about creating a Habitat Bank in your area, or if you would like to visit your local Habitat Bank, don't hesitate to contact our team to set up a meeting.