One of England’s last red squirrel strongholds could become the Woodland Trust’s largest site in the country, but only if a £4.86 million appeal succeeds within two years.
Deep in a remote corner of Wensleydale lies one of the rarest things in England: a woodland where red squirrels still thrive, and where not a single grey squirrel can be found. Snaizeholme, near Hawes in the Yorkshire Dales, is one of just a handful of places in the country where our native reds hold on. Now the Woodland Trust has launched a national appeal to expand it, and the clock is ticking.
The charity is asking the public to raise £4.86 million to secure and manage additional land in the valley, building on one of the most ambitious habitat restoration projects in the English uplands. The expansion would extend a landscape already transformed by 290 hectares of native planting, roughly the size of 406 football pitches, and major work to restore habitats and protect rare wildlife.
For red squirrels, the stakes could not be higher. Snaizeholme sits within the Yorkshire Dales National Park grey squirrel exclusion zone and is currently grey-free, something that is incredibly rare in England. It is one of 17 red squirrel refuges in northern England. Greys outcompete reds for food and carry squirrelpox, a virus that is harmless to them but fatal to our native squirrels. Expanding Snaizeholme would knit existing woodland together into a larger, connected stronghold, giving reds the space and the safe ground they need to recover. Red squirrels have already been spotted in the commercial conifer blocks the Trust now hopes to buy, so securing this land would protect ground the species is already using.
Site Manager Alec Pue said: “This next phase gives us a fantastic opportunity to scale up the work already achieved at Snaizeholme. By bringing this land together, we can create a more connected, resilient landscape where native woodland, open habitats and wildlife can recover side by side”.
The appeal would allow the Trust to secure a further 141 hectares of neighbouring land, including two large blocks of commercial conifer plantation and a wedge of hillside between land it already owns. If successful, the acquisition would expand Snaizeholme to more than 700 hectares, making it the Trust’s largest site in England.
There is a deadline. The land has been bought on the Trust’s behalf by a sympathetic organisation, and the charity now has two years to raise the £4.86 million needed to bring it under their care, covering both purchase and restoration. If it fails, the land will go back on the open market.
Since 2023, the Trust has been restoring the valley’s habitats through large scale tree planting, covering almost 300 hectares across the valley. The site also includes 109 hectares of upland peat bog, where restoration work has recently been completed, supporting carbon storage and improving conditions for wildlife.
Dr Darren Moorcroft, CEO of the Woodland Trust, said: “It’s no exaggeration that Snaizeholme will be a model for the whole of the English uplands, demonstrating excellence in woodland creation alongside the restoration of other habitats for nature recovery”.
Tree planting at Snaizeholme has been supported by the White Rose Forest, the Community Forest for North and West Yorkshire, contributing to efforts to help reduce the impact of flooding in key Yorkshire catchments and improve biodiversity for people and wildlife. The White Rose Forest provided funding for the trees, major site infrastructure, planting and maintenance through their Trees for Climate programme, funded by the UK Government.
Projects like Snaizeholme matter because they show what red squirrel conservation looks like when it moves beyond goodwill into protected, connected habitat at scale. It is exactly the kind of joined-up habitat protection that campaign group Save Our Reds exists to champion, and a model for what the wider English uplands could become.
The Woodland Trust is inviting people across the UK to support this rare opportunity to help secure the future of a recovering landscape. You can find out more and donate at: Support our Snaizeholme Appeal
The Woodland Trust is the largest woodland conservation charity in the UK, with over 500,000 supporters. It wants to see a UK rich in native woods and trees for people and wildlife.
For more information visit www.woodlandtrust.org.uk
Images: © Paul Barker
