Perth and Kinross Council has announced that applications are now open for the 2023-24 Nature Restoration Fund (NRF), which aims to address the biodiversity crisis and its causes - habitat loss and fragmentation, and invasive species.

The funding for Community Greenspace allows for outstanding work on the management of nature in forests and natural greenspaces; invasive species work to take place and to provide machinery to allow communities to carry out nature-friendly maintenance.

Community groups, the Council's Education and Children's Services and the Tayside Biodiversity Partnership were also invited to apply for funding for their own projects. Efforts by these groups included introducing native trees and hedgerows, beebanks, and pollinator-friendly plants; creating a species-rich grassland corridor; extending a community orchard; creating and enhancing SuDS ponds, scrapes, and wetlands for amphibians and dragonflies; and restoring riparian habitat through landscape-scale invasive non-native species control work.

A special note should also be made of the involvement of Rewilding Denmarkfield, Royal Highland Education Trust, teachers, pupils, and local community members in the delivery of Comrie Primary Schools 'Rewilding Comrie' project and Luncarty Primary Schools 'Rewild my school' project; the wetland restoration works of the Kinross Raingardens trail; the partnership project between Tayside Biodiversity, Scottish Invasive Species Initiative, and Perth and Kinross Council that recruited 35 volunteers to undertake catchment wide giant hogweed control at the river Almond; and the wide involvement of volunteers who helped deliver many of the projects. The full report regarding these projects is available from our Nature Fund page.

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For 2023-2024, a further year's funding of £353,000 has been awarded to the Council. The fund continues to focus on "catalysing action at scale to protect and restore Scotland's biodiversity on land and sea" but with a greater focus on the development of nature, and networks to address the drivers of biodiversity loss.

Council Services, community groups, and landowners will this year again take forward projects to undertake ambitious nature restoration projects across the Council area. The NRF supports projects of a minimum of £1,000 that meet its purpose and themes, and this year there is no upper-cost limit to the fund. Applications must be submitted by 20 August.

Councillor Liz Barrett, Vice-Convener of the Council's Climate Change and Sustainability Committee said: "As we face the climate and ecological emergencies, this funding helps to deliver significant changes, bringing real benefits to both biodiversity and our local communities across Perth and Kinross."

Ellie Corse from Rewilding Denmarkfield added: "Thanks to the NRF, we have restored a 3.15 hectare Species Rich Grassland (SRG) corridor, connecting our pollinator-friendly community orchard to the semi-ancient oak woodland. We look forward to using the SRG area to engage and educate people with the enhanced habitat and increased diversity of pollinators and plants through our Friends of Denmarkfield community group and our education sessions for local primary school children."

For further information, to submit an enquiry about the fund, or to download an application form please visit the Nature Fund page.