Woodland Trust to take ownership of Deer’s Leap Wood.
A piece of historic land on the boundary between the Edgbaston, Harborne and Soho wards of Birmingham is set for a secure future as a nature reserve owned by The Wildlife Trust for Birmingham and the Black Country.
Deer’s Leap Wood has a rich history that can be traced back to Medieval times when both it and the surrounding area formed part of the large Rotton Park estate. The name it goes under now is taken from the leaping deer on the Mitchells & Butler beer pump, as the site used to be on the grounds of the brewery there.
The Wildlife Trust are now taking ownership of the site from Persimmon Homes, who are building a new estate on the rest of the land around the reserve, and will quickly start doing urgent works to make it safe and accessible.
Conservation Projects Manager at The Wildlife Trust, Simon Atkinson said: “We’re delighted to be taking on this wonderfully diverse site and can’t wait to get started on preserving this asset for the local community. In order to do that, we need to deal with some dangerous trees on site and ensure that risks to surrounding properties are minimised, but also that it is safe for people to enter the wood to do conservation work. Once this is done, we’ll be able to welcome many more people on site to learn about the wildlife that makes it so special.”
There is an active Friends of Deer’s Leap Wood group who have been looking after the site and The Wildlife Trust are looking forward to working with them to make improvements. The Trust will also be looking for funding to help transform the site and engage more of the local community in looking after it.
Photos – Gary Roskell.