Woodland Trust
FSC Verified Impact: Snaizeholme
Help the Woodland Trust to restore a resilient landscape, fight the effects of climate change, lock away carbon, improve water quality and alleviate flooding in the Yorkshire Dales National Park.
Karen Paterson - Forests & Ecosystem Services Manager
A big, bold boost for northern nature
Snaizeholme, a site of 561 ha close to the iconic Ribblehead Viaduct in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, is one of the boldest habitat restoration projects in the English uplands. Its careful management and restoration includes the creation of one of the largest new native woodlands in England.
The glacial Snaizeholme valley, once part of the Forest of Wensleydale, is a flagship woodland creation project for the White Rose Forest, the Community Forest for North and West Yorkshire and the Northern Forest. Now in the third planting season, this complex nature recovery project sees 283 hectares of native tree saplings planted alongside large-scale restoration of peatland, limestone pavement and riverside meadow habitats.
In 2025, Snaizeholme achieved FSC Verified Impact in recognition of the project's positive impacts on watershed services.
Woodland Trust
Highlights of this project
- Planting 291 ha of new woodland.
- Over 110 ha of peatland habitat restoration.
- Development and implementation of woody debris and leaky dams to slow the flow of water and trap sediment.
- Water flow will be slowed and made more consistent, erosion reduced and water quality will be improved
- During floods, riverbanks will be overtopped creating shingle banks, oxbows, and short-lived pools.
- The valley will be used as a case study and demonstration site for habitat improvement and connectivity.
Project details
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Watershed services
Snaizeholme has been degraded over time by overgrazing and intensive agricultural practices. This has resulted in soil compaction and erosion, peat and wetland drainage, and left the valley with nearly 0% of native tree cover. To improve the valley's ability to purify and regulate water flow, the Woodland Trust will:
- Plant 291 ha of new woodland, comprising 126.61 ha glades (25–400 trees per ha), 70.65 ha open woodland habitat (400–800 trees per ha) and 94.15 ha groves (800-1600 trees per ha).
- Manage 77 ha of riverside meadows through low density conservation grazing with native breed cattle.
- Restore 113 ha of deep peat and retain this in a good condition.
This will help to reduce the flood risk to the communities downstream, and the Woodland Trust will monitor the impacts of this restoration project on local water quality and flood management.
Snaizeholme: A big, bold boost for northern nature
Supporting Snaizeholme
FSC Verified Impact matches businesses, financial institutions, and governments to ecosystem-services projects, like this one, in FSC-certified forests to enable the forest managers to continue their vital work. As a project sponsor, Verified Impact gives you access to credible, verified data around the real-world environmental and social impact that the project is having, so you can communicate this impact to your stakeholders. Please get in touch if you are interested in supporting this project.
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