Biodiversity and grounds

We now have published our first version of the Biodiversity Action Plan. The plan describes the habitats and species we have on the Cranfield University campus and outlines future plans for conservation and management. You may also be interested in reading about our urban BESS research project. 

As Cranfield is a hotspot for a variety of plant, animal and fungi species, we run a series of lunchtime walks around the campus to help staff and students interact with wildlife, and host annual Springwatch events. We encourage staff and students to submit photos to us and report wildlife on campus via our social media pages, or by contacting green@cranfield.ac.uk.

Staff and students are actively involved in volunteering, including honey harvesting and work with the Wildlife Trust. Please see our Engagement page for more information.

To help attract birds such as blue tits, robins, starlings, sparrows and yellow hammers we have installed nest boxes across the Cranfield campus. Initially we engaged with a local charity which supports individuals with learning disabilities to make bird boxes for us. Following this, we ran a volunteering session during one of our annual Green Week events for staff and students to make more bird and bat boxes, which resulted in over 25 new nest boxes located across the Cranfield campus.

We now have over 89,138m2 of land set aside for conservation. Areas of conservation known as ‘biodiversity action areas’ include grasses, wildflowers, woodlands, scrublands and marshlands. Please see our Biodiversity Action Plan (above) for more details.

In 2016, we introduced bee hives onto our Cranfield campus - read the blog post to find out more.

To create a baseline for our Cranfield campus Biodiversity Action Plan, we undertook a 'BioBiltz' event, together with the Bedfordshire Natural History Society (BNHS), as a way of surveying the wildlife on campus. 

With funding from Central Bedfordshire Council, we have created a new walking trail within our woodland. Behind Handley Page close (grid reference D1 on our Cranfield campus map), a new bridge connecting the sports field (behind Fedden House) to the woodland area has also been installed. Within the woodland walk, we have installed bug boxes, and deadwood piles for insects.

Our biodiversity action areas have won the following awards:

• 2018: 'Overall Winner - Best Wildlife Garden' - Wildlife Trust Wildlife at Work Award,
• 2018 ‘Best Employee Engagement in Wildlife Garden’ - Wildlife Trust Wildlife at Work Award,
• 2017: ‘Best Employee Engagement in Wildlife Garden’ - Wildlife Trust Wildlife at Work Award,
• 2016 ‘Best Newcomer Wildlife Garden’ - Wildlife Trust Wildlife at Work Award.
  
  

The county flower of Bedfordshire is the bee orchid which can be seen flowering at various locations on the Cranfield campus in May and June.