Charity’s plans by 2035 include new nature-rich landscapes outsizing London, and engaging with 5 million more of the public
The National Trust has committed to end unequal access to nature and history as it outlines its goals for the next decade.
The Trust has marked its 130th birthday by unveiling the ambitious tentpole plans in its 10-year strategy.
Among its goals is growing people’s access to nature and history over the next ten years, with a view to eventually ending unequal access.
It has announced it is developing a partnership with mental health charity Mind, and will be working with other organisations, to “ensure the conservation charity’s hundreds of nature-rich places can help more people, particularly younger people with mental health problems”.
The Trust cites links between better mental health and access to nature, but warns that this access remains “very unequal”.
The Trust is also inviting towns and cities across the UK to be part of a new programme, Nature Towns and Cities.
Created with founding partners Natural England and The National Lottery Heritage Fund, the upcoming programme is set to support 100 towns and cities to “transform and grow their networks of green spaces, so everyone can enjoy time spent outdoors in nature close to home”.
The programme is expected to publicly launch this summer.
Create nature-rich landscapes outsizing london
The Trust has also set out plans to tackle a decline in nature. It has announced it intends to create 250,000 hectares of nature-rich landscapes, an area one-and-a-half times the size of Greater London, both on Trust land and off it.
Over the next ten years the Trust will work in partnership with environmental organisations, farmers, landowners and local communities on the goal, which is the biggest of its kind.
Over the past ten years the National Trust said it has restored 25,000 hectares of priority habitat landscapes; over the next ten, it is pledging to restore ten times that amount of land to a level that is rich in nature, in a move to support efforts to tackle climate change.
The charity estimates that the benefits of this approach will include restoring vital peatland, which stores more carbon than the forests of Britain, France and Germany combined. It said it will reduce flood risk to many thousands of homes and businesses and also improve the health of enough soil to provide a habitat for one billion earthworms – enough to ring the earth twice.
Create 5 million more volunteers and donors
The Trust said it hopes to “inspire 5 million more people to care for the world around them in the next ten years” through new volunteering opportunities, both directly with the Trust and with partner organisations.
The charity is aiming to fundraise more in the next decade than it has in the previous century, with initiatives including “Adopt a Plot”, which will allow people to sponsor a plot of land for nature recovery at a site they choose.
It will also launch its first ambassador programme, which will see “high-profile advocates” share a passion for the Trust’s charitable purpose through their influence and networks. Author and broadcaster Professor Mary Beard, environmentalist, author and broadcaster Mya-Rose Craig, presenter George Clarke and historian, broadcaster and film-maker David Olusoga are among those expected to be on the programme.
The Trust is also launching an apprenticeships scheme for 130 young people around the country, in a range of careers including gardening and countryside management, as well as project management, information technology, finance and HR. The first round of apprenticeships will open for applications in May.
New exhibitions and ‘world class’ displays
The Trust has committed to continue with the creation of new exhibitions, displays and artist commissions. Its projects include Helios, a brand-new artwork by artist Luke Jerram – a seven-metre model of the sun – which will open at Bath Assembly Rooms on 11 January, before touring other National Trust sites across the year.
Restoration projects include the £17 million transformation of Bath Assembly Rooms, Somerset, and the £1.2 million roof restoration of a 420-year-old Great Barn at Gawthorpe Hall, Lancashire.
More regional and locally-significant food
The Trust sait it will also reflect local heritage in its cafés as well as its programming. After the introduction of signature Welsh dishes at National Trust Cymru sites, more regional and “locally-significant food” is planned on menus alongside more produce from its gardens.
The full strategy is available here: National Trust’s 2025-2035 strategy.
