Lincolnshire re-wilding project aims to bring back nature to Doddington Hall

• Video report by James Webster

Doddington Hall near Lincoln is embarking on a long-term project to bring back nature to the estate through re-wilding.

Wilder Doddington is a 100-year project to encourage natural processes to operate at a large scale - the estate says that it will result in the development of wood pasture, wetland and species-rich grassland.

The land had previously been extensively drained and conventionally farmed.

The project will also offer a range of safaris, tours, guided walks and nature spotting; along with camping and glamping.

Claire Birch, partner of Doddington Farms said: "I spent my 20s worrying about tropical rainforests, but now I realise that landowners in England can play a big part in addressing climate change and biodiversity decline, and we want to be an exemplar of that.

"It isn't just about the large area of land that we are devoting to nature recovery, it is also about all the wonderful people who visit Doddington who can also be part of this journey and hopefully be inspired by it to play their own part in combating the most important issues of our time."

A Natural England spokesperson said: "Wilder Doddington is receiving support from Natural England and funding through the Higher Tier Countryside Stewardship Scheme.

"This is currently the largest rewilding project in the East Midlands and will deliver nature recovery at a landscape scale by creating new wildlife habitats."  

The project will also be supported by the University of Lincoln to expand the academic outreach and generate research outputs from the project.

Paul Learoyd, Chief Executive, Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust, said: "We are excited by the ambition of Wilder Doddington and believe that this landscape-scale aspiration has the potential to deliver biodiversity gain of regional significance and to reverse habitat and species losses in the area."