Barratt Developments and RSPB show how to bring wildlife to Doncaster’s doorsteps

This project comes after a year in lockdown caused many to rediscover and rejoice in their local nature. In 2020, over 1.7 million people sought advice from the RSPB website on how to make their garden more wildlife-friendly, and in January the RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch saw a record-breaking one million people take part in counting the birds in their garden.

Two thirds of people in the UK said nature was a source of solace during the pandemic, with more than half of those surveyed believing the pandemic has made them more aware of the nature around them, in a recent YouGov poll.

The importance of the outdoors to our own health is reflected by the Mental Health Foundation choosing ‘Nature’ for the theme of this year’s Mental Health Awareness Week, running this week, in recognition of how nature helped people through the pandemic.

Visitors to Nature on Your Doorstep will now be able to access: How-to gardening guides; Easy step-by-step videos; and seasonal gardening advice, an online community dedicated to bringing people together to ask questions, seek advice and share their successes and experiences.

Over the next three years, the project will continue to grow into a go-to place for gardening for wildlife. The project will host customisable content to seasonal advice as well as conducting research into what drives or prevents people from welcoming wildlife to their outside spaces and investigating how to empower local communities to make shared spaces a home for wildlife.

Adrian Thomas, the RSPB’s Wildlife Gardening Expert, said: “Our local wildlife has been an incredible source of comfort over the past year of isolation and uncertainty, and we’re so thrilled to see people wanting to help nature in return. With Nature on Your Doorstep we want to provide a place for everyone to learn from each other, ask questions, and be inspired to do more.

“Seven out of eight households in Britain have a garden, and that is a huge patchwork of potential homes for nature. To that hungry butterfly, or that weather-beaten bird looking for a place to roost, just one garden can make all the difference. If we all work together to transform our gardens, we can truly revive our world.”

Daniel Smith, Managing Director at Barratt Developments Yorkshire East, commented: “We want to empower people to give nature a home, by creating an online community for them to learn and to share their experiences, giving them digital tools which they can then take into the garden to get their hands dirty. This is all about helping home owners to turn their garden into havens for wildlife.”

Barratt Developments Yorkshire East has sites across Doncaster including Park Edge, Torne Farm, Lancaster Gardens and Kings Lodge.

For more information please visit Barratt Developments

To turn your patch into paradise for you and your wildlife, please go to: RSPB Your Doorstep