A new report on communities and conservation in the English uplands has found that residents of these unique landscapes feel “abandoned” by politicians, with 97% of participants saying that lawmakers “do not do enough to look after rural communities”.
The People’s Plan for the Uplands (PPU) provides policymakers with information on caring for moorland areas and the communities that depend on them. It highlights a widespread consensus among upland residents that politicians are beholden to a conservation industry that doesn’t care about the adverse effect of its work on local people.
The report was compiled by the Regional Moorland Groups: an organisation that works with land managers, moorland owners, and environmental groups to share knowledge and best practice for preserving the English uplands.
Residents of the English uplands, which include the Peak District, North York Moors and Forest of Bowland, have a simple message for policymakers: use the skills and experience of people who have looked after these landscapes for generations.
The PPU surveyed individuals who live and work in the uplands and naturally feel a strong sense of affinity with the area. These included farmers, gamekeepers, conservationists, scientific researchers, hospitality staff, and healthcare workers.
The report highlights concerns about a “decline in traditional ways of living” in the uplands, which 41% of respondents said was their biggest concern. When asked what they value most about the area, more than 60% identified the region’s biodiversity as of greatest importance.
“What this report shows is the deep sense of anxiety that people across the uplands feel for their way of life and the nature around them,” said Richard Bailey, coordinator of the Peak District Moorland Group, one of the Regional Moorland Groups’ constituent organisations.
“People fundamentally want a say in how the nature around them is managed. However, they feel that politicians are entirely in hock to a conservation industry who either don’t realise or don’t care how their work affects local communities,” he added.
A central theme of the report is that people with a real stake in the uplands – from farmers to conservationists, gamekeepers to hospitality workers – feel that politicians don’t utilise local knowledge or expertise to help protect heather moorland. “Listen to the people who work and live on the hills; keep traditional skills alive”, said Ellen, a farmer in Derbyshire who took part in the study.
Participants also think that the government’s current approach to conservation is harming the region’s biodiversity, including rare species of ground-nesting birds such as curlew and lapwing.
“I think it is of concern to note that areas managed by Natural England and the RSPB have experienced a far greater decline in numbers of ground-nesting birds than moors managed for shooting,” said David, another participant from near Halifax.
The report concludes that traditional moorland management techniques provide substantial public benefits such as enhancement of the landscape, greater biodiversity, improved access, preservation of local heritage and other environmental goods. It also identifies support for game shooting as a way of aligning the conservation of heather moorland with the economic and social interests of people living in the uplands.
Andrew Gilruth, Chief Executive of the Moorland Association, welcomed the People’s Plan for the Uplands, which he described as “an enlightening report examining the deep anxiety residents of the English uplands feel about the state of conservation and rural communities in areas surrounding heather moorlands.”
Mr Gilruth wrote to Steve Reed, Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, commending to him the work of the Regional Moorland Groups as a vital voice of upland communities.
“This report demonstrates the large degree of support enjoyed by private landowners in the uplands in their role as stewards of the countryside. Residents of the uplands feel that local estates provide employment and that game shooting – in particular grouse shooting – has a positive impact on the local economy,” he told the Secretary of State.