National Trust reveals plans to combat nature crisis

Europe's largest conservation charity, which runs Mottisfont near Romsey and Hinton Ampner near Cheriton, has announced it will work with various organisations to create 250,000 more hectares of nature-rich landscape across the UK, both on its own land and elsewhere.

Already at Hinton Ampner the 1,000-acre estate has ceased being as intensively farmed as in the past.

The charity also aims to inspire five million more people to support its conservation goals, whether by giving their time, voice or money.

To further their mission, the charity plans to fundraise more in the next decade than it has in its entire previous century of existence.

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The National Trust will also introduce an apprenticeship scheme for 130 young people in areas such as countryside management, gardening, and project management.

Director-general Hilary McGrady said: "For 130 years, the National Trust has responded to the crises and challenges of the time. Today, nature is declining before our eyes and climate change is threatening homes and habitats on a colossal scale.

"Meanwhile, millions of people can’t enjoy the benefits that green space and heritage bring. So we will ramp up our work to restore nature, both on our own land and beyond our boundaries.

"We’ll work to end inequality of access to green space and cultural heritage. And we will inspire millions more people to take action to protect the things we all need to thrive."

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The charity aims to inspire five million more people to support its conservation goals (Image: National Trust/Paul Harris) The National Trust has also announced a new partnership with mental health charity Mind, aiming to ensure its nature-rich places can help more people, particularly young people with mental health problems.

Ms McGrady added: "The trust is uniquely placed to do something about these challenges and it’s why we are setting ourselves these ambitious but much-needed goals."

The trust's strategy also includes restoring peatland, which stores more carbon than the forests of Britain, France and Germany combined.

The charity will also work with other landowners to manage their land effectively for nature.

The trust is co-producing a new natural history series, Hamza's Hidden Wild Isles, with The Open University for BBC One and iPlayer.

The series will feature wildlife cameraman Hamza as he unveils hidden wildlife gems across the UK.

The charity hopes the series will inspire people to take action and provide some relief from the current mental health crisis.