Common cause

Kevin Lelland details the rationale behind the Trust’s decision not to tender for the long-term lease of Glenridding Common and what it means for future work in the Lake District.

Shortly after the Trust signed an initial three-year lease with the Lake District National Park Authority (LDNPA) to manage land at Glenridding Common I was asked a question: “Is the Trust in for the long haul?” My response at the time (that was subsequently published in the October 2018 edition of TGO Magazine) was: “To make a difference in three years is difficult, but we can start the ball rolling, and build on things that are already working well. What form our tenure might take is up for debate, but we are listening.”

Almost exactly five years from the publication of those words, including three further one-year extensions to the lease, the conversation on the Trust’s long-term involvement at Glenridding Common has reached what appears to be an end, with Trustees agreeing not to tender for a 99-year lease proposed by LDNPA.

On the face of it, this is a striking decision for an organisation known for managing iconic landscapes – which Helvellyn and the adjoining Swirral Edge and Striding Edge undoubtedly are – and for a charity with an ambition to further develop its reach into England and Wales.

But the decision is aligned to a clarity of purpose and a conviction to work in locations where the Trust can best deliver exemplary land management and inspire engagement for the benefit of nature, people and communities.

The Trust respects cultural as well as natural heritage and recognises that with wild places being so diverse we cannot adopt a one-size-fits-all approach across the UK. In turn, by acting to repair wild places, we do so to bring a case for their protection to the top table at Westminster, the Senedd and Holyrood. If we cannot demonstrate sustainable stewardship of land, at a pace that addresses current global environmental crises, we cannot hope to protect wild places for the benefit of present and future generations.

This requires us to critically examine where to invest our time and resources, and that increasingly means working where there is an appetite for and the mechanisms in place to drive positive environmental change.

Having operated the lease of the 1,100ha of Glenridding Common (which includes an area jointly owned by LDNPA and the National Trust) since 2017, we have had six years in which to form relationships and to assess the Trust’s ability to deliver our charitable objectives on the site now and in the future.

During this stewardship, the team has made many improvements at Glenridding Common and delivered fantastic work with local people and organisations. This has included working with the local community to grow on Arctic-alpine plants and plant them out in areas where they are safe from grazing mouths, repairing footpaths and removing vast quantities of litter from the slopes of Helvellyn.

We were able to demonstrate an ability to raise money for the work and, thanks to the generosity of our Members and several key funders, went on to stretch the use of that money across a six-year period. The take-up of any new lease will require further fundraising, and raising money will require the ability to present a clear plan for further ecological improvements.

However, while the terms of the proposed lease asked the lease holder to manage the land towards ‘favourable condition’ the lease did not give the Trust the level of control required to take the logical next steps to manage the land for ecological recovery for the benefit of all.

The proposed terms of the new lease were also not a like-for-like continuation of the current arrangement, with the land holding to be managed differently from what has been managed to date. This was due to the removal of one of the most promising areas for nature recovery – with the area proposed under the new lease agreement reduced in size from 1,100ha to 826ha.

Following advice from the local staff team, the Trustees arrived at a view that the proposed terms of the new lease and current related legislation do not allow scope for the further repair of this special wild place, to lock in carbon and increase biodiversity.

While the Trust will not shut the door on the potential to work again at Glenridding Common, it is clear that there would need to be a new common ground found somewhere between current proposals for long-term tenure and its own charitable objectives. We made a substantial difference in six years, we started the ball rolling and we will continue to listen.

Thirlmere focus

While our lease at Glenridding Common is set to end, the work there has played a pivotal part in establishing our role in an important project nearby. After signing up to a partnership with United Utilities and Cumbria Wildlife Trust in 2020, our work on the other side of the Helvellyn massif at Thirlmere has gone from strength to strength.

It is a partnership that has clear aims to manage the land to sequester carbon, increase biodiversity, produce cleaner water and champion nature-friendly farming with the local community at the heart of the project. As a result, from July 2023, the Trust is delighted to have appointed Isaac Johnston, our former Glenridding Common Ranger, into a role as Thirlmere Resilience Project Officer.

Isaac tells me: “It’s an ambitious and exciting project to deliver nature recovery with the local community and the shepherd at West Head Farm. I’m also personally pleased to still be working on Helvellyn, albeit on the other side of the hill, to bring environmental benefits to its western flanks.”

Last winter, the Trust delivered two tree planting programmes in the Wythburn Valley during which we engaged more than 250 people and planted over 3,000 native trees. With a dedicated staff member in place, the two Trusts will achieve many of the partnership’s objectives. These include plans for a tree nursery to be run with the help of local volunteers, more large-scale tree planting on the hillside, increased engagement through events and volunteering opportunities and a programme of habitat and species monitoring to track improvements across the site.

We couldn’t be more pleased to be working alongside our partners in this project and look forward to making an environmental difference in what is a particularly prominent part of this wonderful National Park.

About the author

Kevin Lelland is the Trust’s Director of Development and Communication,

• Read more about the impact we made at Glenridding Common.
• This article first appeared in the Autumn 2023 edition of the John Muir Trust Journal. If you would like to receive our Journal twice a year, please consider joining the Trust as a member.