Pounds for Ponds

The James Tuttiett Charitable Trust was delighted to support the Pounds for Ponds initiative being led by the South Downs National Park who are seeking to invest around £1m to create and restore 100 ponds across Hampshire and Sussex over the next decade, bringing dew ponds back to the South Downs landscape and helping nature thrive.

Dew ponds are synonymous with the chalk grassland of the South Downs, historically being dug by farmers as a watering hole for livestock and some dating back several hundred years.

Dew ponds are also havens for all manner of species – supporting around 70 per cent of all freshwater species found in lowland landscapes in the UK.  However, over many decades and due to changes in farming practices, dozens of these wildlife oases have fallen into disrepair or been lost completely. With climate change bringing hotter, drier summers, ponds have an increasingly critical role to play in providing habitat and sources of water for wildlife.

The Pounds for Ponds project in partnership with Froglife www.froglife.org aims to reverse this decline by providing vital funding to transform derelict ponds and create some new ones. Of the initial round of projects, 8 are already complete and 2 are in progress.

Jan Knowlson, Biodiversity Officer for the South Downs National Park, said:

“Dew ponds are amazing, but sadly so many have been lost from the South Downs landscape over the past century. These freshwater habitats are oases for wildlife, providing drinking and bathing water for birds, and a home for dragonflies and other aquatic invertebrates. They also make good breeding sites for frogs, toads and newts.  The wildlife value of ponds is also considerably enhanced where you have a network of them, making it easier for species to move between them, meaning populations are more resilient to climate change. Every pound donated will make a big difference and will help wildlife flourish.”

Since the JTCT donation the charity has been hard at work which has seen the successful restoration of a number of dew ponds which include:

Nepcote Green Dewpond
The pond is situated within the heart of the community, on the much used and valued Nepcote Green. The tree clearance works, pond and fencing are complete with native planting still to be finished. However, there are already signs of nature moving in with Pond skaters and Diving Beetles already in situ.

Magdalen Hill Down
Magdalen Hill Down pond will increase diversity and add an attractive feature for visitors to enjoy.  It will provide a link to other ponds in the farmed landscape and within neighbouring reserves.

Kathy Wormald, CEO of Froglife, said:

“It’s fantastic for Froglife to be partnering the South Downs National Park Authority in this project and to be able to contribute towards the costs of restoring valuable dew ponds.  The Pound for Ponds project compliments Froglife’s Discovering Dewponds which is also working in the South Downs on restoring dewponds and working with local communities to raise awareness of the historical and biodiversity value of dew ponds.”

Pounds for Ponds is one strand of the National Park’s ReNature initiative, which aims to create 13,000 hectares of new land managed for nature over the next decade to help tackle the biodiversity crisis.

To find out more please visit: www.southdowns.gov.uk/pounds-for-ponds