Biodiversity
Action
Plan
Key objectives for roadside and other grass verges
- Raise awareness of the importance of managing roadside grass verges to benefit biodiversity in Barnsley.
- Promote roadside grass verge management for biodiversity and increase the number of verges managed in this way.
- Use roadside and other verges managed appropriately to create links and corridors between priority habitats.
- Monitor the extent of roadside grass verges managed for biodiversity.
- Review the impact on plant and wildlife species in grass verges that have undergone positive changes in management.
Roles.
Bodies responsible for roadside and other verges - Highways Agency, Barnsley Council, parish councils, …
- manage roadside and other grass verges to benefit biodiversity through
- reduced use of fertilisers, herbicides and pesticides, and
- appropriate mowing regimes
- creation of some flower-rich areas
Barnsley council as planning authority:
- ensures that developers in relevant cases commit to enhance biodiversity through appropriate management of grass verges.
Voluntary groups and volunteers:
- help with enhancement of grass verges
- help provide information about the condition of grass verges and collect records of the wildlife there.
Proposed actions
- Continue to maintain identified roadside grass verges in conservation cut
- Identify roadside verges for restoration, conservation cuts and management for wild flowers
- Enhancement of 3 verges - Lundhill Road, Everill Gate lane and Lidget Lane as set out on management proposals in DVLP verge project.
- … …
What is being done
- 31 km roadside grass verges taken from amenity cut to conservation cut
BMBC NIA 2013-14 - On the Verge project DVLP Baker Ecology
- Monitoring surveys and training for volunteers 2018
- Wildflower sowing 2018
- Verge management plans produced:
- Lundhill Road
- Everill Gate Lane, Wombwell
- Lidget Lane, Thurnscoe.
2019 DVLP Baker Ecology
Marking Progress
- Roadside and other grass verges managed to benefit biodiversity.
- Roadside and other grass verges surveyed for biodiversity
Verges Action Plan
Barnsley council has revised its grass-cutting policies to identify areas across Barnsley from 2022 for ‘rewilding’, introducing mowing regimes to promote biodiversity. This includes some roadside verges.
Barnsley Council sets out the approach in: Managed rewilding - a new way to manage our grasslands