Rainworth Heath
Miner2Major
Shaping the Future of Sherwood Forest
Miner2Major is a partnership of local authorities, conservation groups and community organisations who have been working in the Sherwood Forest area for many years. This is the latest phase of long-term efforts to restore, explore and celebrate the Forest.
Miner2Major is a five-year scheme (2019-2023), supported by a £2,450,400 grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund. It focuses on the heart of the Sherwood Forest area from Nottingham (Bestwood Park) to Ollerton, and Mansfield to Rufford Abbey, an area that has a distinctive landscape character, which is recognised and valued by local people, as well as visitors from across the world.
Strawberry Hill Heath - Photo by Electric Egg
© Electric Egg
Rainworth Heath
Photo by Electric Egg
Rainworth Heath © Electric Egg
The legendary Sherwood Forest is a significant and celebrated landscape due to its diverse wildlife, important habitats and rich heritage.
The last 200 years have changed the area. It still has quiet places, stunning landscapes, history, wildlife, legend and a sense of belonging, but the great forest and heaths are now just patches in a landscape of industrial heritage.
Rainworth Heath
Rainworth Heath is part of the historic Sherwood Forest area and it is one of the last remaining areas of heathland in Nottingham.
© Electric Egg
Strawberry Hill Heath
A site with a long history as open heathland and part of the historic Sherwood Forest area.
Foxcovert Plantation
A woodland believed to be on the site of part of the ancient Sherwood Forest
Our Goals
As an active member in the combined project, Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust will be collaborating with local people and community groups to encourage and support them to take part in projects aimed at learning about, celebrating and conserving the area’s heritage. We want to transform the way that local people can actively get involved and shape the Forest’s future.
In particular we are looking to:
Rainworth Heath © Electric Egg
Make Better Habitats
Enhancing, restoring, re-creating and re-linking Sherwood Forest’s heathlands and other important habitats to create a better structured mix of habitats in the wider Sherwood landscape ensuring a beneficial and resilient habitat for wildlife. Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust are the lead organisation for this delivery through volunteer practical work sessions and larger scale mechanical habitat works with contractors.
Rainworth Heath
Connect Trails
Volunteer-led surveying of trails across the area, improving access and promoting routes that connect key heritage sites.
Nightjar by John & Eileen Smith
Save Sherwood’s Special Species
Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust volunteer-led surveys to monitor Sherwood’s characteristic species and improving habitats to protect them.
Strawberry Hill Heath - Photo by Electric Egg
Help Sherwood’s Landscape of Trees & Hedges
Training volunteers to collect data about trees and hedges across the area. Working with landowners and communities to plant a new generation of trees.
Citizen science monitoring project - Get involved!
Do you spend time out and about in the Sherwood Forest landscape? Then why not join in with the Miner2Major citizen science monitoring project.
These species pictured below are widespread within the UK but records are scarce within the Miner2Major project area. You will be helping to contribute data to the understanding of species population distribution which in turn will influence conservation management delivery.
All you have to do is record when, where (grid reference) and how many you see of any of the insects and if you can get a photo that would be great, as it will help us to verify your record.
We are now looking for additional data on three extra species (see the red beauties section below) so there are now even more opportunities to get involved. If you spot any of our green or red beauties, let us know!
Upload to iRecord either online or via the app and join the Miner2Major Project activity on the iRecord website.
Green beauties
Red beauties
Further reading
Voices of Sherwood Forest Podcast
Welcome to our podcast which features conversations with communities, volunteers and people who work in and around the wonderful Sherwood Forest area. This has been created by the Miner2Major landscape partnership, supported by the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
Keeping In Touch
Champions of Sherwood
Find out more about the work we have done in the historic Sherwood Forest area, restoring Sherwood Forest's legendary landscape.