Publications
The two draft Local Nature Recovery Strategies for East Sussex and Brighton & Hove and West Sussex will be published here in early 2025 for public consultation. Once approved, the final strategies will also live on this page.
In the meantime, component elements of the strategies will be shared here for you to review or download. These include:
- Interim results from the LNRS Public Survey - Published 17th July 2024
- Draft shortlist criteria - a method for shortlisting the long list of priorities for nature's recovery that is currently being gathered - Published 5th June 2024
- Threats and Pressures Report - Published 24th May 2024
- Areas of protected sites and irreplaceable habitat - Republished 17th July 2024
Interim results from the 1,834 responses to the Public Survey
To enable local people to contribute to the two Local Nature Recovery Strategies being developed for Sussex, a public survey canvassed their views and observations regarding environmental issues.
The survey ran between February and June 2024. 1,834 responses were collected (57% from residents of West Sussex and 43% from residents of East Sussex and Brighton & Hove), to 17 intuitive questions that asked:
- What residents love - their favourite places to connect with nature, the habitats and species they value.
- What residents have noticed - whether they’ve observed any changes to local wildlife and wild places.
- What they’d like to see - which habitats at risk do they want to see recovered and which wider environmental benefits would they most like to see locally.
How these results will inform the LNRS
With some questions allowing for up to three free text answers, the survey garnered a significant volume of non-numerical data. This compliments quantitative answers and provides valuable insights into what local people have seen, what they think and care about, and the strength of their feelings.
To inform the priorities long and shortlisting process, key insights from the survey including verbatim comments have been compiled in this document with a focus on the habitats that respondents value and would like to see recovered. The quantitative figures for each habitat, in addition to the volume of comments and the strength of feeling for them, have been used to score LNRS priorities as low, medium and high in terms of public support. Each priority is also being reviewed against other criteria (outlined in the shortlist criteria document below). Once complete, the scoring of each priority, including the measure of public support, will be shared on this page.
Read the interim results of the Public Survey
Draft shortlist criteria
A method for shortlisting the long list of priorities for nature's recovery - Published 5th June 2024
What is it?
The development of each Local Nature Recovery Strategy must complete key tasks set out in the statutory guidance. These include:
- Gathering together a long list of priorities for nature’s recovery from multiple sources, including those which reflect the most important issues to local people and organisations;
- A process of shortlisting, to reduce the long list into a manageable number of agreed, critical priorities that reflect a balance of suggestions from local partners and support national environmental objectives.
A set of draft shortlisting criteria, with which to assess the long list has been proposed, and is available for review.
Threats & Pressures Report
Part of the description of Sussex and its Biodiversity - Published 24th May 2024
What is it?
A desk-based study commissioned by West Sussex and East Sussex County Councils to inform the preparation of the Local Nature Recovery Strategy 'Description' for their respective areas. The 66-page report describes:
- Future pressures likely to influence habitats and species (their extent, distribution and quality) for the West Sussex and East Sussex LNRS areas;
- Wider environmental issues affecting the geographical areas which changes in land use or management could help to address;
- Opportunities for the application of nature-based solutions within Biodiversity Opportunity Areas (BOAs), Nature Improvement Areas and Natural Capital Investment Areas, as well as opportunities for habitat creation and restoration and management of flood risk areas.
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Areas of protected sites and irreplaceable habitat maps
Republished 17 July 2024
What is it?
A key component of the final Local Nature Recovery Strategy document is the production of a Local Habitat Map. The first part of the mapping process has now been completed for the LNRS areas of West Sussex and East Sussex. These must map existing areas of 'particular importance for biodiversity' which are specifically defined by the LNRS statutory guidance (March 2023) as:
- All national conservation sites;
- All local nature reserves;
- All existing local wildlife sites and areas of irreplaceable habitat.
Areas of irreplaceable habitat are defined as those included in the BNG irreplaceable habitats list, namely:
- Ancient woodland
- Ancient and veteran trees
- Blanket bog
- Limestone pavements
- Coastal sand dunes
- Spartina saltmarsh swards
- Mediterranean saltmarsh scrub
- Lowland fens
Please note:
The guidance is clear that responsible authorities should not map any other areas as being of particular importance for biodiversity. It notes that this is not to suggest that other areas are not of importance for biodiversity but is to help establish a nationally consistent baseline of areas whose particular importance has already been recognised and are protected. Its states that this will help local nature recovery strategies align well with local planning policy and avoid duplicating with the identification of local wildlife sites.
These maps have been produced by Sussex Biodiversity Record Centre, with advice from the East Sussex and West Sussex Responsible Authorities.
