Somerset Wildlife Trust has been working across the county to restore and protect our wildlife and wild places since 1964. This year, the Trust is celebrating its 60th anniversary, and it will be hosting a series of exciting themed events and ways for people to get involved in to help make a difference for nature in Somerset while celebrating a successful 60 years of nature recovery.
A brief history of the charity
On the 14th February 1964, 15 people gathered at Taunton Castle for a ‘pre-formation’ meeting to discuss setting up a county trust for nature conservation. These founders each paid £1 as initial capital to establish the Somerset Trust for Nature Conservation (STNC), which was officially founded in September that year. Thirty years later, STNC would be renamed Somerset Wildlife Trust.
In the six decades since the Trust was formed, it has gone from strength to strength. It acquired its first 17-acres of its flagship nature reserve, Westhay Moor National Nature Reserve, at the end of 1964, and by 1982, the Trust was responsible for 32 nature reserves, 10 of which it owned outright. Today, Somerset Wildlife Trust manages nearly 2,000 hectares of land across 66 reserves spread across the county.
As a science-led movement, the Trust is focused on restoring natural habitats to support a wide range of wildlife and restore natural processes that are essential for healthy landscapes, and provide vital services such as clean air and water, food, carbon absorption and flood alleviation.
Celebrating 60 years of conservation
As the Trust enters its 60th year, it is working as hard as ever to support nature’s recovery in Somerset, with vital support from over 23,000 members and the involvement of over 300 volunteers.
To celebrate this monumental milestone, it will be hosting a series of celebratory events that you can get involved with, including:
