Conserving Peterborough’s ancient woodlands  

Independent charity Peterborough Environment City Trust (PECT) is on a mission. A mission to conserve, manage and protect the city’s ancient woodlands. But the organisation needs your help – read on to find out how you can get involved  

Peterborough city centre on a weekday is a busy place to be, with people rushing to and from work, and everyone with errands to run. However, if you fancy taking some time out then head to Bretton’s ancient woodlands. Here you will find fantastic opportunities for learning new skills and wonderful, tranquil places that are havens for wildlife. These woods were once part of William the Conqueror’s Royal Rockingham Forest and as such had a big part to play in Peterborough’s past. They are now being made more accessible to the public thanks to a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

The project, run in partnership with Peterborough City Council, will see this ancient urban woodland restored and made fully accessible for the first time in over 75 years. The Woodland Heritage in Action (WHIA) project focuses on the historical significance of woodland for the cultural, environmental and economic wellbeing of Peterborough. As part of this, PECT is enabling communities to get closer to their local woodlands and learn new skills through its Volunteer Woodland Management Days, held on Tuesdays from 10am-4pm.

Attendees have the opportunity to carry out a mixture of hands-on activities such as coppicing and thinning, ecological monitoring and tree nursery work. You will have the chance to discover how woodlands can be sensitively managed to ensure their survival in the future and also the protection of their historic features. One of the volunteers explains: ‘Living in Bretton, the works being carried out as part of the WHIA project are right on my doorstep and as such, I have an active interest in the project. Over the last two years I have learnt new skills such as traditional woodcraft and coppicing and have undertaken brushcutter training as part of the project. More recently, we have been undertaking flora and fauna surveys in partnership with the Wildlife Trust.’

If you’re interested in getting involved in the woodland management days then no experience is needed and all tools are provided. To find out where the group is meeting each week please call 07711 555560 or email  

Get involved!
PECT is always looking for volunteers to get involved with its projects. For more information, call 01733 568408, email or visit the website at www.pect.org.uk. Plus find PECT on Twitter @SustainableCity. As a not-for-profit organisation, PECT delivers projects that make a real difference to local communities. Support PECT’s work by visiting the website at www.pect.org.uk/donate to make a contribution. Thank you.