Calvert Jubilee is a 22 hectares (54 acres) nature reserve in Calvert near Steeple Claydon in Buckinghamshire. It is managed by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT). In July 2020, High Speed 2 (HS2) announced it would take possession of 20% of the reserve and clear it.
Most of the site is a deep lake, created by the extraction of clay for the brick industry. The abandoned Great Central Main Line also passed through the site. [1] It is now used in winter by wildfowl such as mallard, tufted duck and pochard. There are two bird hides, and the trust has created three floating islands to enable waterfowl to breed safe from foxes. The lakeside has a variety of wild flowers and butterflies. [2] All of the UK's five varieties of hairstreak butterfly have been seen at the reserve. [3] It is managed by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT) and there is access from the road which passes between Calvert Jubilee and Grebe Lake. [2]
The currently under construction High Speed 2 project will reuse the abandoned trackbed that runs along the eastern edge of the site. 20% of the site was required, including the trackbed. [1]
In February 2019, BBOWT received notification of construction work for HS2 and objected to the plans since the works would interfere with the local ecosystem. In May, the trust refused access to contractors and in December the trust said it was disappointed that contractors had begun work and that HS2 Limited should wait for the findings of the Oakervee Review before proceeding. [3] In July 2020, BBOWT announced that HS2 would be taking possession of part of the site and clearing it. HS2 Limited stated that they now owned 20% of the reserve. [4] On the date set to repossess the land, HS2 Limited said it had postponed the operation. [5] The company took possession of the site in September. [6]
The Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT), is a Wildlife Trust covering the counties of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire in England.
Chimney is a hamlet and former civil parish, now in the parish of Aston, Cote, Shifford and Chimney, in the West Oxfordshire district, in the county of Oxfordshire, England. It is on the River Thames near Shifford Lock, 6 miles (9.7 km) south of Witney. Chimney Meadows 620 acres (250 ha) is the largest nature reserve managed by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust.
Bowdown and Chamberhouse Woods is a 67.9-hectare (168-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest south of Thatcham in Berkshire. An area of 55 hectares is a nature reserve managed by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust.
Bacombe and Coombe Hills is a 76.4-hectare (189-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Upper Bacombe in Buckinghamshire. Bacombe Hill was formerly owned by Buckinghamshire County Council, which transferred it to Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust in 2014. Coombe Hill is owned by the National Trust.
College Lake is a 65 hectare nature reserve in a former chalk quarry in Pitstone in the Aylesbury Vale district of Buckinghamshire. It is one of the flagship reserves of the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust, and it has an information centre, education facilities, a café, toilets and a shop. It is in the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The area east of the lake is a geological Site of Special Scientific Interest called Pitstone Quarry.
Aston Clinton Ragpits is a 2.9-hectare (7.2-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Aston Clinton in Buckinghamshire. It is a former chalk quarry, which is now a nature reserve managed by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust. It is in the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Dancersend is an 81.3-hectare (201-acre) Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) south of Aston Clinton in Buckinghamshire. Part of the site is managed by the Forestry Commission and part by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT). The BBOWT's 47 hectare nature reserve, called Dancersend with Pavis Woods, extends into fields west of the SSSI. It is in the Chilterns Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Rushbeds Wood is a 56-hectare (140-acre) nature reserve near Wotton Underwood in Buckinghamshire, managed by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT). It is a surviving fragment of the ancient Bernwood Forest. The reserve is part of Rushbeds Wood and Railway Cutting, an 80.2-hectare (198-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest. This includes a section of the Chiltern Main Line railway cutting, which runs along the north-east side of the BBOWT reserve.
Chawridge Bourne is a 9.4-hectare (23-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Berkshire, England Part of the site is a 5-hectare (12-acre) nature reserve called Chawridge Bank, which is managed by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust.
Hosehill Lake is a 23.6-hectare (58-acre) Local Nature Reserve west of Reading in Berkshire. It is owned by West Berkshire Council and managed by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust.
Paices Wood Country Parkland is a country park on the edge of the village of Aldermaston in Berkshire, England. The parkland is under the management of the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust.
Rack Marsh is a 4-hectare (9.9-acre) nature reserve in Bagnor, on the north-western outskirts of Newbury in Berkshire. It is managed by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust. It is part of Kennet and Lambourn Floodplain, which is a Biological Site of Special Scientific Interest, and a Nature Conservation Review site. It is also part of the Kennet and Lambourn Floodplain Special Area of Conservation.
Haymill Valley is a 7.8-hectare (19-acre) Local Nature Reserve in Slough in Berkshire. It is owned by Slough Borough Council and managed by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust. The site is known locally as The Millie.
Audrey's Meadow is a 2-hectare (4.9-acre) nature reserve in Newbury in Berkshire. It is owned by West Berkshire Council and managed by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust.
Hurley Chalk Pit is a 1-hectare (2.5-acre) nature reserve west of Maidenhead in Berkshire. It is managed by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust.
Blenheim Farm is a 1-hectare (2.5-acre) nature reserve near Charlbury in Oxfordshire. It is owned and managed by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust.
Cothill Fen is a 43.3-hectare (107-acre) biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest north-west of Abingdon-on-Thames in Oxfordshire. It is a Special Area of Conservation and parts of it are a Geological Conservation Review site, a Nature Conservation Review site, Grade 1, and a National Nature Reserve. It also includes two areas which are nature reserves managed by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust, Lashford Lane Fen and Parsonage Moor.
