A group of wildlife volunteers wants to create a new wildflower meadow in Woodingdean.
The Woodingdean Wildnernss Group is working with Brighton and Hove City Council on plans for a strip along Warren Road, north of the lawn memorial cemetery.
The space has historically been a mowed green technically classified as a verge, but the group believe it has the potential for a drastic increase in wildlife if managed differently.
The project was trialled last summer creating a colourful, pollinator-friendly wildflower landscape to support bees and butterflies, which have been in decline nationally.
The space was surveyed by community volunteers in 2023 who identified a diverse range of wildlife, including 103 species of wildflower, five species of bees, and 14 species of butterflies.
The project will receive ongoing maintenance by Brighton and Hove City Council, including two early season grass cuts to ensure a healthier and more attractive meadow throughout the year.
Paths are mown by the council through the site to allow for accessibility, as are the edges of the meadow to keep foliage from spilling out onto pavements and roads. There will also be a maintained mown area away from the cemetery boundary to use for picnics and relaxation.
The Woodingdean Wilderness Group will play a key role in fostering community engagement with the site through litter picking, fundraising, wildlife surveys and volunteering opportunities.
Feedback from the consultation will be collected by WWG and compiled into a report for Brighton and Hove City Council to help inform final decisions on the project.
Clare Hopkins, Chair of the Woodingdean Wilderness Group said: “We’re really excited about the potential of this meadow to become a space where both people and nature can thrive. We have already started monitoring the abundance of biodiversity here with really encouraging results including a Bee Orchid last year.
“With local support, it can offer an enhanced environment that’s accessible to everyone and helps play our community’s part in nature recovery. This is about more than just wildflowers — it’s about creating a shared space for people, pollinators and the planet.”
Woodingdean Councillor Jacob Allen said: “This is a unique opportunity to transform a space with lots of potential into something truly special — a space that supports biodiversity, promotes wellbeing, and strengthens our community’s connection to nature.
“Since we were elected in 2023 to represent Woodingdean, we have been working on delivering on our promise to improve biodiversity and nature recovery in the area, and I’m proud to be supporting this initiative to accomplish that.
“We are keen to hear from as many residents as possible to ensure we hear the voice of local people as we move forward with the project.”
The consultation is open until Friday, 2 May 2025 and can be completed here.
Alternatively, paper copies can be found at the Woodingdean Community Centre, Warren Road, BN2 6BA. Open Mondays and Thursdays 9am-12pm.
It’s going to be Beautiful ! We need more wildflower areas like this across the city.
Agreed. Managed wildflower can be really pretty, and has a strong benefit to the biodiversity of the area.
Some people complain because they feel it looks messy though.
I think that is the key managed wild flower can be pretty, what worries me is people start these ideas and then the managed bit gets lost and a mess is the result. As someone who has a loved one in the Lawns Cemetry I do hope its well managed and not left to become a mess on unkempt overgrown weeds. People who are very good at starting ideas and organising petitions usually then move on and no one is left to carry on the management. Brighton and Hove Council prove themselves totally incapable of maintaining our parks and gardens to a high standard these days. I fear this wll be the end result here sadly.