Conservation Team updates

The Conservation Team had a successful summer, particularly over the breeding season. Partnership working with Space for Shorebirds, English Heritage, the National Trust and potentially the Coquet Island RSPB team will continue this winter.

Working with the National Trust team on Inner Farne, volunteers helped with predation surveys, vegetation management and built platforms for Arctic Tern to nest. While supporting Space for Shorebirds, the Conservation Team took part in ‘chick watch’ to keep an eye on Ringed Plover chicks and monitored trail cameras to understand predation risks, behaviours and the effectiveness of nest cages.

Practical conservation tasks planned for autumn and winter include hedge laying, dead hedging, coppicing and beach cleans.

The Conservation Team has completed 54 beach cleans this year so far. In total, 23 out of 26 beaches in the National Landscape have been cleaned this year to date, and 3,390kg of weighable waste has been removed.

Defra funded programme Farming in Protected Landscapes has also recently approved funding for three new barn owl sheds following a successful year, with barn owls breeding in previously built sheds. They will be constructed with help from Conservation Team volunteers in three different locations on the Northumberland Coast.

With Northumberland Coast Path condition monitoring now completed, this enables significant access improvements across the National Landscape. This major project will include repairs, the removal of barriers to access and other improvements which will be completed by April 2026.

There is currently a waiting list for those interested in volunteering for the Conservation Team. For further information and to register interest, please email info@northumberlandcoast-nl.org.uk.

The Northumberland Coast Conservation Team is supported by the Coast Care Trust, a Charitable Incorporated Organisation. You can donate to the Conservation Team volunteer initiative here.