Shannen Headley BBC News, West Midlands
Birmingham has been recognised as the UK’s first official Nature City by a group including the National Trust and Natural England.
The city has been awarded the accolade as part of a programme working to improve access to nature in urban communities.
The award recognised the role played by the city council and others in providing communities in Birmingham with better access to nature and green spaces.
The city is joined by Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, which were collectively named the UK’s first official Nature Towns.
The Nature Towns and Cities programme – a parnership of Natural England, National Trust and the National Lottery Heritage Fund – aims to help at least 100 locations across the UK to become greener places for people to live and work.
The latest award follows a £9m grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund just over a week ago to restore Victorian glasshouses at Birmingham Botanical Gardens.
An artist’s impression showed how the Victorian glasshouses could look after the multimillion-pound restoration
Birmingham City Council has developed a 25-year City of Nature plan – a long-term strategy to reconnect people with nature, as well as improve biodiversity, and tackle climate and health inequalities.
Councillor Majid Mahmood said it had has laid out a “robust” framework for transforming how nature is valued in Birmingham.
“We’re really leading the way in creating and recovering urban nature and are one of the greenest cities in Europe,” he said.
“We work with community groups such as Birmingham Tree People to plant trees in inner city areas such as Alum Rock, and in partnership with Open Door Community Foundation and Friends of Seven Streets Park – Balsall Heath to develop pocket parks in their neighbourhoods.
“These are small but impactful green spaces that bring nature to people’s doorsteps while supporting wellbeing, biodiversity, food growing and community pride.”
Birmingham boasts some of the largest areas of parks and green spaces of any UK city
As well as the Nature City and Nature Town titles awarded, 40 towns and cities across the UK have received funding to help them take steps to improving access to nature.
In the West Midlands, Walsall and Coventry have received almost £1m each from the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
The funding in Coventry will will be used to allow 3,000 young people learn new green skills through citizen science projects, new education resources and school allotments.
Hilary McGrady, Director General at the National Trust, said the wider programme would “enrich places with green space and contribute to the healthy mind, body and future that people need”.
