The Isle of Sheppey is an island off the northern coast of Kent, England, neighbouring the Thames Estuary, centred 42 miles (68 km) from central London. It has an area of 36 square miles (93 km2). The island forms part of the local government district of Swale. Sheppey is derived from Old English Sceapig, meaning "Sheep Island".
Kent Wildlife Trust (KWT) is a conservation charity in the United Kingdom that was founded in 1958, previously known as the Kent Trust for Nature Conservation. It aims to "work with people to restore, save and improve our natural spaces" and to "ensure that 30% of Kent and Medway – land and sea – is managed to create a healthy place for wildlife to flourish". In 2023, they have reported over 30,000 members and an annual income of £8 million. KWT manages over ninety nature reserves in Kent, of which thirty-seven are Sites of Special Scientific Interest, three are national nature reserves, five are Special Areas of Conservation, four are Special Protection Areas, six are local nature reserves, thirty-eight are in Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and one is a scheduled monument.
The North Kent Marshes are in the far north of the county of Kent spanning dry and wet south banks and inlets of the Thames Estuary in south-east England. The marshes are one of 22 Environmentally Sensitive Areas recognised by the UK's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA). They are in the Thames Gateway regional planning area. They include the 5,289-hectare (20.4 sq mi) South Thames Estuary and Marshes biological SSSI.
The Blackwater Estuary is the estuary of the River Blackwater between Maldon and West Mersea in Essex. It is a 5,538 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). An area of 4,395 hectares is also designated a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance, and a Special Protection Area 1,099 hectares is a National Nature Reserve. Tollesbury Wick and part of Abbotts Hall Farm, both nature reserve managed by the Essex Wildlife Trust, are in the SSSI.
The Ribble and Alt Estuaries lie on the Irish Sea coast of the ceremonial counties of Lancashire and Merseyside in the traditional county of Lancashire in north-west England, and form the boundaries of a number of conservation schemes.
Harty is a small hamlet on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent consisting of a few cottages, a church and a public house, the Ferry Inn. It is part of the civil parish of Leysdown.
Deben Estuary is a 981.1-hectare (2,424-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) covering the River Deben and its banks 12 kilometres from its mouth north of Felixstowe to Woodbridge in Suffolk. It is a Ramsar internationally important wetland site and a Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds. It is also in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It partly overlaps two geological SSSIs, Ferry Cliff, Sutton and Ramsholt Cliff.
Oare Marshes is a 71.4-hectare (176-acre) Local Nature Reserve north of Faversham in Kent. It is owned and managed by Kent Wildlife Trust. It is part of The Swale Nature Conservation Review site, Grade I, National Nature Reserve, Ramsar internationally important wetland site, Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds, and Site of Special Scientific Interest.
South Swale is a 410.5-hectare (1,014-acre) Local Nature Reserve north of Faversham in Kent. It is owned by Kent County Council and managed by Kent Wildlife Trust. It is part of The Swale Ramsar site, Special Protection Area and Site of Special Scientific Interest
Elmley is the local name for the Isle of Elmley, part of the Isle of Sheppey in Kent, England. It was also the name of a very late 19th century industrial village on the isle. Edward Hasted describes, in 1798, the isle as two-eighths of the Isle of Sheppey estimated as 11 miles by 8 miles. Its present national nature reserve covers more than the easily traceable area of the former isle by extending to the east, over Windmill Creek, one of two Sheppey inlets, former internal tidal channels.
Alde Mudflats is a 22 hectare nature reserve west of Iken in Suffolk. It is owned by the Crown Estate and managed by the Suffolk Wildlife Trust. It is in the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and part of the Alde-Ore Estuary Site of Special Scientific Interest, Ramsar internationally important wetland site, Special Area of Conservation, Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds, and Grade I Nature Conservation Review site,
South Thames Estuary and Marshes is a 5,289-hectare (13,070-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest which stretches between Gravesend and the mouth of the River Medway in Kent. Part of it is a Nature Conservation Review site, Grade I, and part is a Royal Society for the Protection of Birds nature reserve. It is part of the Thames Estuary and Marshes Ramsar internationally important wetland site and Special Protection Area under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds.
Seasalter Levels is a 71.4-hectare (176-acre) Local Nature Reserve in Seasalter, on the western outskirts of Whitstable in Kent. It is owned and managed by Canterbury City Council. It is part of The Swale Ramsar site, Special Protection Area and Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Oare Meadow is a 2-hectare (4.9-acre) nature reserve in Oare, north of Faversham in Kent. It is managed by the Kent Wildlife Trust. It is part of The Swale Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Hurst Castle and Lymington River Estuary is a 1,077.3-hectare (2,662-acre) biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest near Lymington in Hampshire. It is a Nature Conservation Review site and two areas are Geological Conservation Review sites. Three areas are local nature reserves, Boldre Foreshore, Sturt Pond and Lymington and Keyhaven Marshes; the latter site is managed by the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust. Part of it is North Solent National Nature Reserve. It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site and Special Protection Area. Parts of it are in Solent Maritime and Solent and Isle of Wight Lagoons Special Areas of Conservation.
Hythe to Calshot Marshes is a 591.8-hectare (1,462-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest which stretches along the west bank of Southampton Water between Calshot and Marchwood in Hampshire. It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site and Special Protection Area, and of Solent Maritime Special Area of Conservation. Calshot Marshes is a Local Nature Reserve and Hythe Spartina Marsh is a nature reserve managed by the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust.
Calshot Marshes is a 51.1-hectare (126-acre) Local Nature Reserve near Calshot, at the junction of The Solent and Southampton Water in Hampshire. It is owned by Hampshire County Council and managed by Hampshire Countryside Service. It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site and Special Protection Area, of Solent Maritime Special Area of Conservation and of Hythe to Calshot Marshes Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Hackett's Marsh is a 20.4-hectare (50-acre) Local Nature Reserve in Bursledon in Hampshire. It is owned by Hampshire County Council and managed by Hampshire Countryside Service. It is part of Solent and Southampton Water Ramsar site and Special Protection Area, of Solent Maritime Special Area of Conservation and of Lincegrove and Hackett's Marshes Site of Special Scientific Interest.
