SUNRISE project launches in North Staffordshire

SUNRISE project launches in North Staffordshire

Sixteen urban sites in North Staffordshire are to benefit from a share of £3.6 million of funding – to create new wildlife habitats, improve water quality and reduce flooding.

The SUNRISE (Stoke and Urban Newcastle Rediscovering Its Secret Environments) Project, led by Stoke-on-Trent City Council and delivered in the main by Staffordshire Wildlife Trust, will see work take place across Stoke-on-Trent and Newcastle-under-Lyme over the next two years, focusing on watercourses and urban green spaces.

The majority (£2.1m) of the funding comes from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF). The scheme is a partnership between Stoke-on-Trent City Council, Staffordshire Wildlife Trust, the Environment Agency, Groundwork West Midlands, Newcastle Borough Council, Staffordshire County Council and the Wild Trout Trust.

The project aims to create better habitats for wildlife both within the River Trent watercourse itself and along the adjoining river bank. It will also improve sustainable urban drainage systems (SUDS), control invasive species and improve existing woodland and grassland. All of the projects will be delivered by the end of 2020.

Sites involved in the SUNRISE programme include: Bradwell Wood, Bucknall Park, Causeley Brook, Cromer Road, Etruria Valley, Ford Green (along the course of Ford Green Brook), land adjacent to the M6 in Clayton, Lyme Brook, green space in Milton alongside the Caldon Canal, Pool Dam Marsh, Silverdale Park, Staffordshire University campus, Thistleberry Parkway, Victoria Ground and Trent Mill (section of the River Trent parallel to Leek Road between Victoria Road and Bucknall Road). Locations for some of the SUDS work are yet to be decided.

Cllr Anthony Munday, cabinet member for greener city, development and leisure at the city council, said: “Stoke-on-Trent is one of the greenest cities in the country, with some fantastic green and open spaces on our doorsteps, and that is something we are rightly very proud of. This work will improve the city’s biodiversity at various sites, and also help to create attractive and welcoming spaces within the city for residents to enjoy.”

Julian Woolford, chief executive of the Staffordshire Wildlife Trust, said: “This is a really exciting project for wildlife in Stoke-on-Trent and North Staffordshire and I’m looking forward to seeing the projects getting off the ground. We’re thankful to the ERDF for the funding we have received following a successful application process, and to all of the partners who have got on board.”

Matt Lawrence of the Environment Agency said: “At the Environment Agency, we’re looking forward to working with partners to contribute to this exciting project which will result in greater biodiversity, reduced flood risk and an improved environmental landscape for the people and wildlife of Stoke-on-Trent and Newcastle-under-Lyme.”
You can keep up-to-date with the latest SUNRISE project development on its website here http://www.erdf-sunrise.co.uk

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Notes to editors:

European Regional Development Fund
The project has received £2.1m of funding from the England European Regional Development Fund as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (and in London the intermediate body Greater London Authority) is the Managing Authority for European Regional Development Fund. Established by the European Union, the European Regional Development Fund helps local areas stimulate their economic development by investing in projects which will support innovation, businesses, create jobs and local community regenerations. For more information visit https://www.gov.uk/european-growth-funding.