Jessie was very welcoming, and we chatted through the work of the Trust and the challenges that Herefordshire faces in the coming years.

The meeting was positive, and we felt that there was a need for the Trust to have more contact with the MPs of Herefordshire. Advocacy and campaigning are essential for the future success of the Environment Bill and the implementation of the Government’s 25-year plan. 

We discussed biological data in Herefordshire; its lack of availability and the importance of updating this data ahead of further development in the county and potential changes to agricultural land use following BREXIT. We talked about the challenges of funding conservation and the need for greater clarity on the solutions available to all of us to tackle climate change and biodiversity loss in Herefordshire.

We'll be following up from this meeting in a number of areas, one key one to be to produce a Green Manifesto for wildlife and conservation in the county as a tool for explaining to our MPs, County Councillors, Parish Councillors and the wider public what a wildlife-rich Herefordshire should look like and how we might get there.