Photo: Eurasian oystercatchers

The government will invest £60 million over the next three years – more than double the previous round of funding – into the Species Recovery Programme, marking the largest ever government investment in directly supporting threatened species. A further £30 million will be dedicated to fund species recovery on the national forest estate.

It comes as Defra unveils a new campaign, “Wild Again: Restoring England’s Wildlife”, which will encompass the government’s existing and future work to protect and recover native species through projects including the flagship Species Recovery Programme.

The programme, run by Natural England, funds conservation projects including habitat restoration, captive breeding and species reintroductions, helping to tackle habitat loss, safeguard fragile ecosystems such as ancient woodland and chalk streams, and restore nature-rich landscapes.

Successful projects set to receive funding for 2026-2029 will be confirmed by Natural England in May but early indications suggest the funding will support action across a wide range of species from birds to beetles, moths to mammals and spiders, snails and seahorses.

Environment Secretary Emma Reynolds said:

“This Government is bringing threatened wildlife back from the brink with the largest ever investment in species recovery.

“This long-term commitment is a decisive step towards reversing the decline of nature and protecting it for generations to come.”

Natural England Chair Tony Juniper commented:

“If there is one positive thing about species decline, it is the fact that it is usually reversible. For decades Natural England’s species recovery work has revealed how even the rarest of the rare can be brought back from the brink. The red kite, lady’s slipper orchid, pool frog, beaver and large blue butterfly are among the examples that demonstrate the many opportunities at hand.

“Through the proven winning mix of good science and effective partnerships we know that many species can be restored to favourable status. This new government funding is most welcome, and will enable us to support even more of the many initiatives underway across England to halt and reverse the decline of our wonderful wildlife.”

Over the past three decades the programme has helped protect over 1,000 species and prevented the national extinction of at least 35 species. More than 600 species benefited from conservation efforts by the programme between 2022-2024, including water vole, hazel dormouse and oystercatcher.

Key successes include:

England is one of the most nature depleted countries in the world. Since 1970, wildlife populations have fallen by a third with one in six species at risk of extinction.

The funding uplift will help support the government’s mission to reverse this decline and meet legal targets set out in the Environmental Improvement Plan, which commit to halting the decline in species abundance by 2030 and reducing species extinction risk by 2042 against 2022 levels.

The government has already announced the largest nature friendly farming budget in history, with £11.8 billion to be spent across this Parliament, the creation of three new National Forests, and approved the first wild beaver releases since they were hunted to extinction around 400 years ago.

The majority of applications for Species Recovery Programme funding are still undergoing assurance. These projects will be considered at the Programme Board in May, after which funding decisions and announcements for that group will be made later in the month.