The Tame Valley Wetlands (Landscape Partnership) Scheme is a large, landscape-scale scheme with local people, waterways, heritage and wildlife at its heart. You can read more about the partnership here.
Our vision:
To create a wetland landscape, rich in wildlife and accessible to all. This will be achieved by taking a landscape-scale approach to restoring, conserving and reconnecting the physical and cultural landscape of the Tame Valley. By re-engaging local communities with the landscape and its rich heritage, a sense of ownership, understanding and pride will be nurtured to ensure a lasting legacy of restoration and conservation.
Thanks to funding from the National Lottery through the National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) and organisations on the Tame Valley Wetlands Landscape Partnership, the Tame Valley Wetlands Landscape Partnership Scheme (TVWLPS) was delivered between 2014 and 2018. The scheme covers an area of 104 km² (10,350 hectares to be precise!) in the Tame Valley, following the River Tame between Birmingham and Tamworth, in North Warwickshire and south-east Staffordshire.
With funding from partners and NLHF, detailed development and consultation work was carried out to fine tune the scheme. This culminated in a second round application to NLHF in December 2013, which included the production of a Landscape Conservation Action Plan – a detailed plan for the scheme and the Partnership’s ‘mandate for the landscape’.In 2014, the Partnership was awarded £1.7 million by NLHF to deliver a £2.5 million scheme (with full funding later secured).
To achieve our vision, four aims were identified, which reflect the four themes of the Heritage Lottery Fund’s Landscape Partnership funding stream, as well as the overarching aims of the Partnership. In order to meet these four aims, we set a variety of SMART objectives. Meeting these aims and objectives ensured that the scheme reached its targets and produced the following 10 key outputs: Although each of these projects have been allocated under a particular programme, each project will have multiple outcomes, spanning across various scheme themes. We also developed a number of reserve projects for delivery if current projects became unachievable or if we secured additional funding. The projects have been developed in close collaboration with partners and the local community. Click on the titles below to see an overview of some of the programmes and projects that TVWLP delivered: Creating and Restoring Built and Natural Heritage Legacy projects are projects that have been continued after the completion of the TVWLPS National Lottery Heritage funding ended in 2018. These projects will continue to be delivered over the coming years and contribute to our Vision for the future: “By 2030, the Tame Valley Wetlands will be a high quality, well-known and valued landscape, rich in wildlife, beauty and culture for all to enjoy.” Between 2018 and 2030, the TVWLP will ensure a strong legacy for the HLF-funded Landscape Partnership Scheme and create a sustainable long-term future for the Partnership, working together to deliver projects categorised under four key themes: We will continue our TameForce volunteer opportunities and school education engagement programmes. We have also carried out more delivery works towards enhancing the landscape and heritage around the Tame Valley Wetlands. The re-profiling of the River Cole, located upstream of the River Tame in North Solihull, is an important project aiming to enhance the biodiversity and aesthetics of the river. Working alongside Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council and the Environment Agency, with support from our National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF), the project will make the River Cole better for both wildlife and people visiting the area. Read more about reprofiling the River Cole Lea Ford Cottage is an ancient c17th Tudor farm worker’s cottage originally located near the small village of Lea Marston. Through around 10 generations, for almost three hundred years, the building remained virtually unchanged. The cottage was then moved to the walled garden at Hams Hall Environmental Centre. One of TVW’s recent projects, funded through our National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) Landscape Partnership, has been to restore the cottage to near its original state so that it can be used by visitors for educational purposes, such as to provide an inspiring learning space for school groups. You can find out more about the landscape and the scheme by downloading the following (low-res) sections of the main scheme document – the Landscape Conservation Action Plan (LCAP): If you are interested in reading the final review of the TVWLPS Evaluation Report (October 2019), please see the documents in downladable PDF form below. Aims and Outputs +
Aims and Outputs -
Our four principal aims:
Key outputs
Projects +
Projects -
The National Lottery Heritage Fund scheme delivered 35 projects under four programmes, all working towards the four aims / themes of the scheme.
Transition and Legacy of the TVWLP +
Transition and Legacy of the TVWLP -
Reprofiling the River Cole
Renovating Lea Ford Cottage
Landscape Conservation Action Plan +
Landscape Conservation Action Plan -
TVWLPS Final Review +
TVWLPS Final Review -