If any of the following species have been seen close to the Festival Church, it is important to seek advice from an expert. You will need to know if they are present now, and to follow expert recommendations when planning works. All of these species have specific legal protection as a recognition of their rarity. All of them are rare or becoming increasingly endangered, so it is important to ensure that management and other works do not adversely affect them. In addition, there may be things you can do to help these special species. N.B. Swift and House Martin do not have specific legal protection but are included, as roof repair works often impact breeding swifts and house martins which is against the law.
This is not a complete list of protected species, there are many more, but these are ones that are more likely to be found. All wild birds, their nests and eggs are also protected by law, as are all bats and veteran trees. In a few cases, species are considered particularly prone to disturbance or destruction by people, so the exact location of where they were recorded is not publicly available but can be requested. These ‘blurred’ records are included here, and the accuracy is to 1km. This means that the species has been recorded in close proximity to the
Festival Church, or a maximum of 1km away from it. As these ‘blurred’ species are quite mobile, there is a strong likelihood that they can occur close to the
Festival Church. To learn about these special species, use the link provided for each species in the table below
One important species which is not included here is the Peregrine Falcon. This is protected and advice should be sought if peregrines are nesting on a church or cathedral. Peregrine records are ‘blurred’ to 10km, hence the decision not to include records here. Remember too that species not seriously threatened nationally may still be at risk in your region and be sensitive to works. You should check with local experts about this. You may also need to seek advice about invasive species, such as Japanese knotweed and aquatics colonising streams or pools, which can spread in churchyards.
N.B. If a species is not recorded this does not indicate absence. It is always good practice to survey.
Caring for God’s Acre can help and support you in looking after the biodiversity present in this special place. If you know that any of these species occur close to the
Festival Church and are not recorded here, please contact Caring for God’s Acre with details (info@cfga.org.uk).
To find out more about these and other species recorded against this
Festival Church, go to the Burial Ground Portal within the NBN Atlas.