North Norfolk Woods

With its location to the northwest of Norwich, and containing many good-sized towns and numerous villages, the North Norfolk Woods Living Landscape is easily accessible to a large population of people. As well as several NWT nature reserves within the area, there are numerous other important places for wildlife including County Wildlife Sites, various Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), and a number of publicly accessible areas of common land.

The area includes four NWT woodland nature reserves: NWT Foxley Wood, Norfolk’s largest ancient woodland; NWT Thursford Wood, with its impressive collection of veteran oak trees; NWT Honeypot Wood, with its rich WWII history, and the recently acquired NWT Brett’s Wood, a former conifer plantation.

At 123 hectares, Foxley is Norfolk's largest remaining ancient woodland, and a firm favourite with visiting families. In early spring pale yellow primroses peek out from the banks of ditches, a prelude to the riot of colour to follow a few weeks later when bluebells carpet the woodland floor. Other interesting woodland plants and wildflowers are found, as well as many species of birds and butterflies. Indeed, Foxley is also a great place to listen to the dawn chorus of spring songbirds – as long as you don't mind getting up very early.

Just outside Fakenham, the 10-hectare Thursford Wood may be small in size but contains some of the oldest oak trees in the county – some may be more than 500 years old. Thursford also has an excellent selection of wildflowers, summer ferns and autumn fungi. Good numbers of common woodland birds are present.

NWT Honeypot Wood, 6 km west of East Dereham, is a delightful reserve with a wealth of history and character. Thought to be a remnant of wild wood dating back to the retreat of the last Ice Age, its more recent history includes a period of distinguished service in World War II, when RAF Wendling used buildings on the site as a bomb dump. Today the wood has good numbers of orchids and is excellent for displays of fungi and leaf colour in autumn.

Brett's Wood, close to Thursford, is one of NWT's newest reserves, having been purchased in 2010 with a large donation from a private woodland trust. A former, decades-old conifer plantation, the site offers an exciting opportunity for woodland restoration.

There are many other local nature reserves that are readily accessible to visitors – for instance near Fakenham is the NOA’s Hempton Marsh, and the impressive Hawk and Owl Trust reserve at Sculthorpe. Around other towns and villages in the area are many other excellent wildlife areas – take a walk or a bike ride and explore them!

The wildlife and habitats of the North Norfolk Woods Living Landscape are under threat. Many species found here that were once common are now in decline (such as summer-visiting turtle doves and nightingales), and increasing development pressures are crowding in on its precious habitats. Despite this, there is much you can do to help ensure this underrated part of Norfolk and its wildlife has a thriving future.

If you live in the region you can help by making your garden more wildlife-friendly by: feeding the birds in your garden, putting up nest boxes and bat boxes, or creating a wildlife pond or a compost heap.

There are many other actions you can take such as encouraging local businesses or schools to support an area for wildlife, joining together with other people within the community to create wildlife-friendly areas, volunteering for NWT or other conservation projects, speaking to local councillors and MPs about the importance of local green spaces and wildlife, and buying from local farmers engaged in good environmental practices.

Or, just simply, get out into the woods and countryside of Norfolk and learn about its wildlife and habitats. You could even undertake a simple wildlife survey (NWT occasionally runs surveys for certain species, and more regular ones are carried out by the BTO and RSPB) to help scientists and researchers learn more about local wildlife numbers and distribution.