For all information about Natural England's regional offices in the East of England, including contact details, news, press releases and events, visit the Natural England website.

Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire

Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire have some important habitats in a landscape that is predominantly agricultural. These habitats include fenland sites such as marshes, swamps and wet grasslands, limestone and chalk grasslands as well as clay habitats including claypits and woodlands.

The agricultural nature of the landscape leaves many of the existing habitats fragmented and isolated which in turn makes their management more difficult: for example continuing traditional sheep grazing of grassland is difficult in an area with few sheep farmers. This area contains 138 Sites of Special Scientific Interest, and work is continuing to get these sites managed well and in good condition for the wildlife that lives there.

With major communication links and several Growth Areas (Stansted- Cambridge- Peterborough/Luton-Dunstable- Houghton Regis/Milton Keynes/ and Bedford and Marston Vale) there is considerable pressure in the two counties for new housing, industry, extraction and recreation.

Natural England is consulted by Local Authorities on many of these proposals in which we have an interest, including protecting existing wildlife sites as well as looking for opportunities for new sites and links. We also encourage others to protect natural habitats through their work and actions, including being involved in a number of projects which aim to increase biodiversity in the two counties.