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28-587: Kingfisher Country Park is a country park situated in the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull in England, straddling the historic border of Warwickshire and Worcestershire , mostly within the former. Initially designated as Project Kingfisher by Birmingham City Council , the park was formally declared a country park in July 2004. The country park is located along an 11 km (6.8 mi) stretch of

56-403: A car park, toilets, maybe a cafe or kiosk, paths and trails, and some information for visitors. Some have much more, with museums, visitor centres, educational facilities, historic buildings, farms, boating, fishing, and other attractions. Many larger country parks organise entertainment for visitors, and are venues for firework displays, shows and fairs and other large, outdoor events. There

84-480: A country park is to provide a place that has a natural, rural atmosphere for visitors who do not necessarily want to go out into the wider countryside. Visitors can enjoy a public open space with an informal atmosphere, as opposed to a formal park as might be found in an urban area. For this reason country parks are usually found close to or on the edge of built-up areas, and rarely in the wider countryside. A country park usually has some more formal facilities, such as

112-464: A key part of proposals to regenerate existing urban areas. Natural England is working with partners in the growth areas, growth points and proposed eco-towns to prepare and implement green infrastructure strategies and demonstrate good practice on the ground. Natural England is one of the steering group partners of Neighbourhoods Green , a green Infrastructure partnership initiative which works with social landlords and housing associations to highlight

140-514: A neutral level. Natural England was challenged in High Court in 2006 by Peter Boggis, a pensioner who protected his house from erosion. Natural England claimed that as the site of Boggis's house, at Easton Bavents north of Southwold on the Suffolk coast was a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), the protection went against the scientific community's interests. Natural England lost

168-581: A year, and another 40 or so in Scotland. Most country parks were designated in the 1970s, under the Countryside Act 1968 , with the support of the former Countryside Commission . In more recent times there has been no specific financial support for country parks directly and fewer have been designated. Most parks are managed by local authorities, although other organisations and private individuals can also run them. The 1968 Countryside Act empowered

196-582: Is independent of government. However, the Secretary of State for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs has the legal power to issue guidance to Natural England on various matters, a constraint that was not placed on its predecessor NDPBs. Its powers include defining ancient woodlands , awarding grants, designating Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and Sites of Special Scientific Interest , managing certain national nature reserves , overseeing access to open country and other recreation rights, and enforcing

224-454: Is not necessarily any public right of access to country parks, and visitors are usually subject to byelaws when they enter the park. Some charge for car parking, some are free. These parks vary tremendously from one to another, and really have only their purpose in common: to provide easy access to the countryside for those living in the towns and suburbs . They do not necessarily have any great nature conservation interest, although often this

252-436: Is responsible for ensuring that England 's natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna , freshwater and marine environments , geology and soils, are protected and improved. It also has a responsibility to help people enjoy, understand and access the natural environment . Natural England focuses its activities and resources on four strategic outcomes: As a non-departmental public body (NDPB), Natural England

280-507: Is responsible for the delivery of some of Defra's public service agreements (e.g. reversing the long-term decline in the number of farmland birds by 2020 and improving public access to the countryside). Natural England takes its finance, human resources and estates services from the Defra Shared Services organisation. Information technology services are outsourced to IBM. Natural England was established on 1 October 2006 by

308-568: Is the case. In Hong Kong a large part of the territory's countryside is officially designated as country parks. Most of these are reservoir watersheds, serving the dual purpose of providing recreational facilities and contributing to Hong Kong's water supply. Natural England Natural England is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs . It

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336-692: The Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 , which implemented the recommendations of a rural review by The Baron Haskins of Skidby . It was formed by the amalgamation of three founder bodies: It received the powers of the founder bodies. In 2008, Sir Martin Doughty , the Chairman of Natural England, warned the Prime Minister of the potential danger of genetically modified crops . However, in 2012, Poul Christensen, CBE,

364-845: The River Cole from Small Heath in Birmingham to Chelmsley Wood at the M6 motorway . It is a Local Nature Reserve . The overall aim of the project was to preserve and care for the River Cole valley. The project was inaugurated in 1985. Both the Birmingham City Council and the Solihull MBC sponsored the project in a joint venture. Charities and organisations that funded the project were: The country park has an area of around 1,000 acres (4.0 km) and crosses

392-587: The Countryside Commission to recognize country parks. Although the Act established country parks and gave guidance on the core facilities and services they should provide it did not empower the designation of sites as country parks, as it was left to local authorities to decide whether to endorse a site calling itself a country park. In England, country parks can be accredited by Natural England , and some also have Green Flag status. The purpose of

420-730: The associated regulations. It is also responsible for the administration of numerous grant schemes and frameworks that finance the development and conservation of the natural environment, for example environmental stewardship , the Countryside Stewardship Scheme , environmentally sensitive areas , and the Access to Nature Scheme. It has been severely criticised recently by badger protection lobbyists for allegedly ignoring scientific data and granting extended badger cull licences to DEFRA. Natural England's latest corporate plan sets out its goals and detailed objectives. It

448-488: The border between Birmingham and the Metropolitan Borough of Solihull . Within the original project, and now surrounding the country park, are several local nature reserves. These include Yorks Wood which was declared a local nature reserve by Solihull MBC in the 1990s after purchasing it in the 1980s. Other nature reserves include Babbs Mill Lake and Alcott Wood. Cole Bank, Smiths Wood, Elmdon Nature Park and Elmdon Coppice are proposed local nature reserves. Flowing through

476-458: The case in 2009, when Mr. Justice Blair, the brother of the former Prime Minister, ruled that Mr. Boggis' "human predicament" was more important than the site's SSSI status. Natural England won the subsequent appeal in October 2009. On 23 April 2019, Natural England (NE) announced that it was revoking three general licences in England for controlling certain wild birds using firearms. The removal

504-531: The country park is the River Cole which forms the River Cole Valley. The valley is home to different wildlife habitats and different types of landscape . The area contains a number of artificial lakes surrounded by plants ranging from grassland , wetland and woodland which dates back hundreds of years. Babbs Mill Lake in Kingshurst was dug to be a balancing feature in times of flooding at

532-560: The duration of these pay restraints and issues including equality and disparity between Public body pay increases. The following take from 2 December 2020 Research briefing on Public body pay. "In 2010, the Coalition Government announced a two-year pay freeze from 2011/12. Following cuts to local government funding, local government workers were subject to a three-year pay freeze. From 2013/14 to 2017/18 public sector pay awards were capped at an average of 1%. This policy

560-418: The importance of, and raise the overall quality of, design and management for open and green space in social housing. In 2019 and 2020, NE noted that housing development could adversely affect the environment in some rivers as sewage outputs would increase levels of nutrients , specifically nitrogen and phosphorus. NE advised that development should only proceed in these areas where this could be mitigated to

588-501: The next Chairman of Natural England, said that middle England should embrace new technologies like GM crops as long as there were adequate testing and safeguards. As a Public Body Natural England has been subject to pay Freezes and pay restrictions following the 2008 financial crash, and is likely to be subject to the 2020 three year pay freeze also. Natural England staff have now been subject to pay freezes and 1% pay increases. Staff and Unions representing staff have voiced concerns over

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616-570: The project name), water voles and mink . In the ponds created in Shard End , many invertebrates have nested as well as many amphibians . Skylarks have been seen around the course grassland and they have bred successfully for a number of years. Country park In the United Kingdom, the term country park has a specific meaning. There are around 250 designated country parks in England and Wales attracting some 57 million visitors

644-502: The river. Shard End Lake was created as a result of an old quarry being filled with water. The area is open to cyclists and walkers who can walk along the river towards other nearby country parks such as Shire Country Park and also walk to other places such as the Grand Union Canal , Coleshill , Kingshurst Brook, Meriden Park and Sheldon Country Park . Animals seen along the river include herons , kingfishers (note

672-603: The staff who came from original bodies which vested to Natural England - The Rural Development Service, English Nature and the Countryside Agency. On this matter, and the pay freeze and pay reductions over 10 years Unions representing Natural England staff have threatened strike action. In May 2008, Natural England published a report, State of the Natural Environment , which brought together statistics and facts about England's environment. The report

700-399: Was intended to be used by environmental organisations as a benchmark and source for policy development. It complements reports on different topics produced by other organisations: Natural England funded eight pilot green exercise projects through local regional partnerships. These projects increased levels of physical activity and people's connections to their local green spaces. However, it

728-589: Was lifted in 2017 and from 2018/19 to 2020/21 the parts of the public sector that are covered by the PRBs received pay rises above 2%. The Trades Union Congress has criticised the constraints that were in place from 2010, arguing that they led to a "decade of lost pay". The severity of the cuts by the Conservative government to Natural England in particular have been reported in the media including The Guardian newspaper. There also exists pay disparities between

756-401: Was not clear whether these projects really changed people's long-term attitudes. Natural England is promoting the concept of green infrastructure as a way to deliver a wide range of benefits for people and the natural environment together. It believes that green infrastructure should be delivered via the spatial planning system, as an integral part of new development everywhere, and also form

784-503: Was without consultation or communication. These licences covered 16 species of birds including several species of crow, gull and pigeon, along with non-native species such as Canada goose and sacred ibis . Natural England took the decision following a legal challenge by the environmental group Wild Justice which questioned the legality of the general licences. This rendered farmers temporarily unable to kill these species without applying for individual licences. On 26 April 2019 NE issued

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