Cumbria Connect
Restoring upland habitats and strengthening sustainable land use across one of England’s most iconic landscapes.
Cumbria is home to some of England’s most celebrated scenery, from the rugged heights of the Lake District to the rolling Yorkshire Dales. This region encompasses a mosaic of internationally significant habitats, including ancient woodlands, carbon-rich blanket bogs, upland hay meadows and fertile river valleys.
These fells once hosted England’s last Golden Eagle, a poignant symbol of the biodiversity lost from England’s uplands. Yet, this remains a living, working landscape. Centuries of drainage, sustained grazing pressure and river modification have simplified these habitats and disrupted natural processes. To reverse this, the Cumbria Connect partnership operates across 42,000 hectares between the towns of Penrith and Kendal. By collaborating with farmers, estates and local communities, the programme demonstrates how large-scale nature recovery can revitalise the rural economy, build climate resilience and bringing lost wildlife back to the fells.
Cumbria, northern England, United Kingdom
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB)
Ongoing since 2022
42,000 ha
Upland hay meadows, upland woodlands, peatlands, species-rich upland grasslands, rivers and wetlands, temperate rainforest, lowland meadows and floodplains
European water vole, pyramidal bugle, marsh fritillary butterfly, downy willow, red squirrel, Atlantic salmon, juniper
Carbon storage, water regulation, soil restoration, pollination, recreation and wellbeing
Why this place matters
The eastern fells of the Lake District are globally recognised for their beauty and cultural heritage. They are also ecologically significant as a headwater catchment where the condition of peatlands, woodland and rivers shape the biodiversity, water quality and ecosystem health far beyond the Lake District. Rivers here feed Haweswater Reservoir, which supplies water to 2.2 million people in the northwest of England.
Upland peatlands store vast quantities of carbon and act as natural sponges, slowing the flow of rainfall and reducing sediment entering reservoirs. Healthy wetlands and floodplains help regulate water flow across the wider catchment, lowering flood risk downstream and improving water quality. Flower-rich upland hay meadows provide a lifeline for pollinators and ground-nesting birds, while rare temperate rainforest supports a rich diversity of plants, lichens, mammals and invertebrates found in few other places in the UK.
When functioning well, these habitats deliver vital public services, from safeguarding drinking water and reducing flood risk to storing carbon and providing space for people to connect with nature. When degraded, they lose resilience, water quality suffers and biodiversity declines.
As a working landscape, this area must sustain rural communities while protecting the natural systems that underpin water security. Cumbria Connect aligns habitat restoration with evolving agricultural policy, supporting farmers to adopt nature-positive practices. This approach proves that restoring processes for water security, climate resilience and biodiversity recovery can strengthen both nature and farming for the long term.
Action on the ground
Cumbria Connect is restoring natural processes and improving landscape connectivity through collaboration between estates, conservation bodies and local land managers.
On the River Lowther at Setterah on the Lowther Estate, the river has been reconnected to its floodplain for the first time in over 200 years.
European Water Voles have been released across the catchment.
farms have engaged with advice, grants and practical support for hedgerows, ponds and hay meadows.
At Wild Haweswater, over 200,000 trees have been planted since 2011 and ongoing planting schemes of over 25,500 trees are supporting the expansion and recovery of rare temperate rainforest.
of peatland have been restored through grip blocking, reprofiling and rewetting.
jobs in nature restoration, launched apprenticeships in nature friendly farming and established a wildlife ranger traineeship with RSPB and others.
of new woodland has been established, strengthening habitat networks and expanding native tree cover across the partnership.
Every intervention is guided by ecological monitoring to ensure habitats become bigger, better and more connected. Looking ahead, the programme will expand woodland and peatland recovery and deliver new Landscape Recovery Schemes restoring 20,000 hectares over 20 years, securing lasting benefits for wildlife, water security, climate and people across Cumbria.
Visit the Cumbria Connect website
Water voles return to Cumbria’s rivers
Artist residency open call: Cumbria Connect
Rare lichens discovered in Cumbria’s Naddle Forest
