Coastal communities, young people, and businesses from across Somerset have been taking bold action to protect and monitor the county’s coastline as part of the Wilder Coast project from Somerset Wildlife Trust. As part of this three-year project, over 350 community events have been held — thanks to support provided by 50 dedicated volunteers — and hundreds of people of different backgrounds and ages have been inspired to take a more direct role in standing up for Somerset’s coast.

The project, which was funded by Hinkley Point C Community Fund and the National Lottery Climate Action Fund, has now come to an end after a successful three years of coastal engagement and conservation efforts, and Somerset Wildlife Trust is celebrating its key accomplishments, along with the dedicated communities that have been involved: 

• Over 350 community events have been hosted across the county, including nature connection activities, citizen science training, educational talks and webinars, and practical conservation days. 

• 14 new community-led initiatives were established, all the way from Brean to Porlock, including Bridgwater, which were focused on taking positive steps for nature within specific local areas, forming a network of action groups right across Somerset’s coast. 

• Citizen science records have been improved across the county through the use of iNaturalist, a popular wildlife monitoring tool used to map species distribution and track population changes. 

• Popular surveys were hosted through ‘Shoresearch’, part of a national citizen science programme focused on wildlife on the intertidal shore (the exciting place where the sea meets the land), and ‘Sea Watch’, part of the Sea Watch Foundation’s monitoring of marine species, which included dolphins and porpoises. 

• 20 schools were involved in the project from across the county, and training events were provided to educators to help promote the importance of marine education. 

• Young people were supported in taking action for nature, including the ‘While We Still Can Group’, which was made up of 8 enthusiastic young people who hosted a ‘pop-up’ shop in West Somerset to promote the importance of recycling and keeping our oceans clean. 

• Businesses across the coast also collaborated on the project, including Minehead and Coast Development Trust and Dunster Holiday Chalets. 

Mark Ward, who led the Wilder Coast project at Somerset Wildlife Trust, says:

"Somerset's coastline is amazing, and it's been a real privilege to support communities and individuals in raising awareness of and advocating for the protection of the vitally important ecosystems that make up the coastal and maritime parts of the county. The Severn Estuary and Bristol Channel has been given multiple conservation designations over the decades, but for these to be meaningful we must continue to shout about their importance and ensure their status is constantly monitored and improved in the face of multiple impacts from coastal developments, to pollution to climate change. The Wilder Coast project has been a brilliant champion of local people who are helping Somerset Wildlife Trust and others in this task through assisting and leading on citizen science surveys to organising events and projects using creative arts and artists. It's been an exemplar of community engagement at its best.” 

Elizabeth Atkinson, who has been volunteering with Somerset Wildlife Trust for over two years, and who headed up West Somerset Wildways, a community-led initiative that focused on West Somerset, commented: 

“Leading the West Somerset Wildways project has convinced me that is engagement with nature which leads to action for nature, whether by improving habitats, campaigning for wildlife, sharing enthusiasm, or ‘making data work for nature’ through iNaturalist uploads, which contribute to a vital international database of the natural world. But it’s engagement that comes first, and I’m proud to have helped to make that happen.” 

Many of the sub-groups involved in the Wilder Coast project, including the ShoreSearch and Sea Watch survey groups, will be continuing despite the project’s conclusion, thanks to the dedication of a passionate group of volunteers who are setting up as an independent recording group. Rob Sidaway, one of the volunteers, commented: 

“The ShoreSearch and Sea Watch Teams have developed through the Somerset Wildlife Trust’s leadership, in particular officer Mark Ward, into a keen band of amateur volunteer citizen scientists. The overall aim has been to contribute to recognised national databases of information. We have developed identification skills of intertidal marine life, including rocky and muddy shores, as well as larger marine mammals. Somerset Wildlife Trust have given the team the skills and confidence to enter a new era in which the work will be self-managed by a small volunteer committee, whilst providing consultancy support for this transition to ensure its success.” 

Following the conclusion of the Wilder Coast project, Somerset Wildlife Trust will be continuing its work to ensure Somerset’s marine and coastal environments are healthy and thriving, and that at least 30% of land and sea is managed positively for nature by 2030 — a core pillar of the charity’s 10-year plan to create more space for nature. 

The Bristol Channel and Severn Estuary are internationally important for a diverse range of wildlife, including migratory and overwintering birds and over 100 fish species. The Trust strives to be a leading advocate to protect these habitats, developing the monitoring, data and evidence behind them and collaborating with local organisations to restore a thriving marine nature recovery network along the Somerset coast and beyond. 

You can find out more about the Wilder Coast project and Somerset’s internationally important coastline below.

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