Charnwood Forest is a hilly tract in north-western Leicestershire, England, bounded by Leicester, Loughborough and Coalville. The area is undulating, rocky and picturesque, with barren areas. It also has some extensive tracts of woodland; its elevation is generally 600 feet (180 m) and upwards, the area exceeding this height being about 6,100 acres (25 km2). The highest point, Bardon Hill, is 912 feet (278 m). On its western flank lies an abandoned coalfield, with Coalville and other former mining villages, now being regenerated and replanted as part of the National Forest. The M1 motorway, between junctions 22 and 23, cuts through Charnwood Forest.
The British Birdwatching Fair or Birdfair is an annual event for birdwatchers, held every August at Rutland Water in England, run by staff and volunteers from the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust. The birdfairs in 2020 and 2021 were cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic and in November 2021 the fair was permanently discontinued over financial concerns. By January 2022, however, one of the original conceivers of the Birdfair, Tim Appleton MBE, announced a new event under the guise of Global Birdfair. In March 2022 an official announcement was made that Global Birdfair would take place at a new location, Rutland Showground, from 15–17 July.
The Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust (LRWT) is one of 46 wildlife trusts across the United Kingdom. It manages nature reserves in Leicestershire and Rutland, and was founded in 1956 as the Leicestershire and Rutland Trust for Nature Conservation. As of January 2018, it has over 16,000 members, a staff of about 25 and more than 500 volunteers. It is based in Leicester, and is managed by a Council of Trustees which is elected by the members. It is a charity which covers all aspects of nature conservation, and works to protect wild places and wildlife.
Launde is a civil parish in the Harborough district of Leicestershire, bordering Rutland. The parish is the site of Launde Abbey. It gives its name to an electoral division of Leicestershire that stretches all the way from Scraptoft, Thurnby and Stoughton, near Leicester, to the border with Rutland. The civil parish population is included in the civil parish of Loddington.
Charnwood Lodge is a 134.2-hectare (332-acre) biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Charnwood Forest, east of Coalville in Leicestershire. It is a national nature reserve, and contains two Geological Conservation Review sites. It is managed by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust.
Loughborough Meadows is a 60.5 hectares biological Site of Special Scientific Interest on the northern outskirts of Loughborough in Leicestershire, England. An area of 35.3 hectares is managed as a nature reserve by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust.
Cribb's Meadow is a 4.2-hectare (10-acre) nature reserve east of Wymondham in Leicestershire. It is owned and managed by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust, and is designated a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest under the name Cribb's Lodge Meadows. It is also a National Nature Reserve and a Nature Conservation Review site, Grade 2.
Narborough Bog is an 8.5-hectare (21-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest east of Narborough in Leicestershire. It is owned and managed by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust.
Wymeswold Meadows is a 4.5-hectare (11-acre) nature reserve east of Wymeswold in Leicestershire. It is owned and managed by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust.
Croft Pasture is a 6.2-hectare (15-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest on the outskirts of Croft in Leicestershire. Most of the site, totalling 5.8 hectares, is owned and managed by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust.
Stonesby Quarry is a 3.2 hectares biological Site of Special Scientific Interest between Stonesby and Waltham on the Wolds in Leicestershire. It is part of a 4 hectare nature reserve managed by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust.
Breedon Cloud Wood and Quarry is a 63.3 hectares biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest north-east of Worthington in Leicestershire. It is a Geological Conservation Review site. An area of 33 hectares is managed as a nature reserve by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust.
Tilton Cutting is a 4.4 hectares geological Site of Special Scientific Interest west of Tilton on the Hill in Leicestershire. It is a Geological Conservation Review site, and is owned and managed by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust as Tilton Railway Cutting.
Charley Woods is a 26.8 hectares nature reserve north of Copt Oak in Leicestershire. It is owned and managed by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust. It consists of Cat Hill Wood and Burrow Wood, with a field between them.
Kelham Bridge is a 8.1 hectares nature reserve north of Ibstock in Leicestershire. It is owned and managed by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust.
Wanlip Meadows is a 16.2 hectares nature reserve south of Wanlip and north of Leicester. It is owned and managed by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust.
Mountsorrel Meadows is a 12.6-hectare (31-acre) nature reserve on the eastern outskirts of Mountsorrel in Leicestershire. It is purchased by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust in 2004.
Ulverscroft Valley is a 110.8 hectares biological Site of Special Scientific Interest north-west of Markfield in Leicestershire. The site is in five separate blocks, and two areas are nature reserves managed by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust (LRWT). Lea Meadows is owned by the LRWT and it is also a scheduled monument. Part of Ulverscroft Nature Reserve is owned by the LRWT and part is owned by the National Trust and leased to the LRWT.
Lea Meadows is a 12-hectare (30-acre) nature reserve east of Markfield in Leicestershire. It is owned and managed by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust. It is part of the Ulverscroft Valley, which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest, and part of it is a scheduled monument.
Ulverscroft is a 56-hectare (140-acre) nature reserve north of Markfield in Leicestershire, England. It is managed by the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust (LRWT) and part of it is owned by the National Trust and part by the LRWT. The site is partly in Ulverscroft Valley, which is a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
