Wolverhampton to bloom after £600,000 funding approved
Wildflower meadows, tree planting and bat and bird boxes will be introduced in parts of Wolverhampton after £600,000 funding was secured.
Environmental improvements will be made at three sites – Fowlers Park in the city centre, Ward Street in Bilston and Pendeford Park.
It forms part of the Black Country Blue Network 2 project which aims to improve green space linked by the canal and river network.
The move has been made possible after a funding bid was made to the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) which was approved.
Councillor Steve Evans, the city council's cabinet member for city environment, said: "I want to thank the ERDF for providing the council with such a significant amount of money. This work is something we were keen to carry out and now we have this extra funding, we will be able to make it happen.
"This money has been granted from the ERDF specifically for these important environmental projects. The work we are planning will not only improve our open spaces for a wide variety of plants and wildlife but will also mean we can improve access for local residents and open up places for everyone to enjoy.
"In 2019 the council declared a climate emergency and the tree planting planned as part of this project is a key way of us helping the environment. As well as keeping the city green, trees help to support wildlife and improve air quality."
A total of £1.67 million was awarded for the partnership project – which also includes Walsall Council, Dudley Council, the Canal & River Trust and Severn Rivers Trust.
Wolverhampton received more than £600,000 and council chiefs will also be responsible for project managing the work across the whole Black Country Blue Network.
Work at Fowlers Park will include tree planting to improve the variety of species and encourage a diversity of wildlife, the creation of wildflower meadows and improvements to the park lake which has become overgrown.
New signage and disability friendly improvements to access points are also planned to encourage more visitors to the area.
In Ward Street, the money will fund the creation of grassland and meadows to attract a variety of insects and improve biodiversity. There will also be planting to improve the variety of species and access improvements to and through the site.
Pendeford Park will see the creation of a new wildflower meadow, installation of bat and bird boxes to support the local bat and bird populations, tree planting, woodland management and improvements to access paths.
