Children from Sneinton C of E Primary School have been sprinkling wildflower seeds at The Island Quarter development to usher in Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust’s annual “30 Days Wild” campaign.
Green space is at the heart of The Island Quarter development – with a ‘green river’ concept to create good quality public realm – which was shown at an on-site celebration event in May. The plans, which received outline planning approval in April 2019, have been designed with a full lifecycle of uses in mind – including hotels and hospitality, office space and community living.
Richard Watson, of Conygar, said: “We want The Island Quarter to be a place where people want not just live or work, but spend time as well, which is why we’ve incorporated a network of public realm and green spaces into the masterplan to give future generations who grow up with the development the opportunity to embrace nature, in what would otherwise be a largely urban environment.
“Throughout the development, areas of wild meadows will be sown on vacant plots, in response to the clear public appetite to spend more time outdoors and engage with nature. so more than 2.5 acres of meadow is being created now, which we are really excited about.
The seeding of two wildflower areas coincided with the beginning of Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust’s annual 30 Days Wild campaign, which encourages everyone across the county to do one “wild” thing a day throughout the month of June.
Paul Wilkinson, chief executive of Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust, said: “30 Days Wild is about encouraging people to make time to connect with nature, but in urban areas this can be difficult, so we are delighted that a significant area of wildflower planting has been incorporated into The Island Quarter site at such an early stage.
“We look forward to working with the team as the development progresses and exploring the way that embracing nature can help developers create outstanding sites, while simultaneously supporting nature’s recovery and helping mitigate the impacts of climate change.”
Julie Doyle, partnership and enrichment lead at Sneinton C of E Primary School, said: “Learning to care for and about our environment is an important part of children’s education, so we were very excited to be involved in making this part of The Island Quarter a valuable green space for future generations. We’ve enjoyed an ongoing partnership with Conygar and The Island Quarter over the past year and are looking forward to many more opportunities in the months and years to come.”