Barratt Developments and the RSPB
Discover our partnership journey to help build homes in a nature-friendly way
Protecting and restoring over 30 million sq. ft. of wildflower meadows by 2030
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Our success stories so far
We've helped many businesses deliver bold sustainability initiatives at scale. Explore these corporate sustainability examples and find out how we can help you.
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The RSPB has formed long-lasting partnerships with many different types of businesses, all helping our wildlife and wild places in a variety of ways. Our Business Engagement team works with them every step of the way to develop and deliver bold and ambitious sustainability initiatives at the scale needed to make a real difference.
Environmental initiatives we’ve undertaken with our partners:
Barratt Developments
Since 2014, we’ve been working with Barratt Developments on ways to build new houses with wildlife in mind.
Together, we’ve
- Delivered pioneering projects like Kingsbrook – a 2,450 home development with 60% being nature-rich green space including orchards, wildflower meadows and Hedgehog highways.
- Set an industry standard for nature-friendly housing with the National House Building Council to help showcase what we’ve learnt and influence the wider sector.
- Inspired homeowners to take action for nature through our Nature On Your Doorstep campaign.
- Put nature and the wider landscape at the core of all new Barratt-designed developments by setting up dedicated teams and developing corporate-level guidance.
We believe that installing wildlife-friendly elements and promoting biodiversity should be integral to new housing development. Our partnership with the RSPB has helped us to drive up biodiversity standards on our developments and to lead the industry in supporting and protecting nature.
- David Thomas, Barratt Developments PLC Chief Executive
Ella’s Kitchen
Together, the RSPB and Ella’s Kitchen are helping birds, bees and bugs, by protecting and restoring the precious wildflower meadows and grasslands they call home, across the UK.
As part of Ella’s Kitchen’s Big Pledge to Little People, we are
- Protecting and restoring 30 million sq/ft of wildflower meadows on RSPB land by 2030.
- Sharing our knowledge, expertise, and networks to help shape Ella’s Kitchen's business practices and help safeguard biodiversity and food supply for future generations.
- Supporting parents and carers, and their little ones, to connect with nature and help protect wildlife across the UK.
At Ella’s Kitchen, our mission is to help every little one to grow up happy, healthy and never hungry. We’re working with the RSPB to ensure a healthy planet, that has plenty of food, and which is buzzing with life for future generations. We know the climate and nature crises pose a significant challenge to our world and believe that businesses have a responsibility and an opportunity to be part of the solution.
- Chris Jenkins, Head of Impact at Ella’s Kitchen
Ella's Kitchen and the RSPB
idverde
We’re making our urban green spaces more nature-friendly and climate resilient through our partnership with idverde, the country’s largest greenspace management company.
Since 2017 we’ve:
- Developed brilliant ways of protecting and enhancing wildlife habitat across more than 7,000 hectares of green space, including the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London, the London Borough of Bromley and large areas of the Midlands and Northern Ireland.
- Trained up 100 idverde employees on nature-friendly ways of working, supported by one million volunteering hours.
- Created refuges for nature in many urban environments by working with local communities as well as idverdes’ commercial and local authority clients.
This partnership has gone from strength to strength, becoming invaluable to our understanding and approach. The RSPB is now part of the idverde family and a significant asset for our clients
- Kristian Lennard, idverde Deputy CEO
Co-op
In a UK supermarket first, the RSPB and Co-op joined forces to protect nature’s precious peatlands and mobilise communities to take action for nature, the climate and people.
Through our landmark three-year partnership, we’re:
- Restoring and managing more than 300 hectares of peatland across Wales and Scotland, funded by sales of Co-op’s compostable carrier bags. This will help avoid emissions the equivalent of 40,000 tonnes of CO2.
- Our peatland restoration work is also providing cleaner water, better flood protection, local jobs and improved health and wellbeing, as well as vital habitats for some of our most at-risk wildlife.
- We’re also working with Save Our Wild Isles and The National Lottery Community Fund to support the UK-wide Nature Neighbourhoods initiative. This has seen 18 community organisations across the UK create people-powered plans for nature in their neighbourhoods.
“Our pioneering partnership with the RSPB will play a role in helping Co-op avoid carbon emissions through repairing vital peatlands to increase carbon stores and support our work to prioritise action where we are able to make the most impact”
- Guy Stuart, Director of Sustainability, Technical and Agriculture, Co-op
Co-op and the RSPB
the Co-op are working with us to further RSPB’s peatland restoration ambitions in response to the nature and climate crises.
Omaze
An amazing £4.9 million was raised for the RSPB’s peatland restoration work thanks to our record-breaking partnership with Omaze.
Since 2020, the Omaze community has raised more than £56 million for UK charities, through the famous ‘Million Pound House’ draws. In 2024 it was the RSPB’s turn to benefit.
- This time, the house on offer was a coastal property in Cornwall. Together with Omaze, we delivered a promotional campaign, supported by our ambassador Deborah Meaden, which not only increased entries to the draw but also allowed us to share conservation messages with new audiences.
- Thanks to the generosity of the public, we were able to raise £4.9 million – the most money raised for a charity in Omaze history!
- This money will help to fund the RSPB’s work to protect and restore peatlands across the UK, including those at RSPB Forsinard Flows. As well as providing homes for wildlife, peatlands improve water quality, help to prevent flooding and lock away carbon, making them vital in the fight against climate change.
“Omaze offers people the chance to win amazing houses, whilst also introducing charities to large new audiences that would otherwise be out of reach – it’s a win-win for entrants and charities.”
- James Oakes, Chief International Officer at Omaze
Omaze and the RSPB
£4.9 million raised through Omaze to protect precious peatlands
holidaycottages.co.uk
Award-winning RSPB and holidaycottages.co.uk partnership campaign raises more than £80,000 for woodland restoration in 2024.
Since 2020, we’ve been working with holidaycottages.co.uk to support woodland restoration at RSPB nature reserves across the UK.
- As part of the latest fundraising campaign, holidaycottages has been marketing its ‘Near RSPB Reserves Showcase Collection’ of rural properties. Each customer booking one of these properties contributes to the restoration of 1 square metre of woodland with the RSPB.
- In 2024 alone, more than £80,000 was raised through this partnership, helping us to restore more than 170,000 square metres of British woodland. Key sites that have benefitted include: Franchises Lodge in the New Forest, Gwenffrwd Dinas in Wales and Corrimony in Scotland.
- The campaign also won the ‘Responsible Marketing Award’ at the Dotties Marketing Excellence Awards!
RSPB Text Area
We hope the Near RSPB Reserves collection inspires more people to explore the outdoors by becoming RSPB members and discovering the unique reserves situated on the doorstep of the properties featured.”
- Dave Bloor, Head of RSPB Corporate Partnerships
holidaycottages.co.uk and the RSPB
holidaycottages.co.uk has partnered with the RSPB to support the revival of natural habitats across four of its key woodland reserves
Contact us
If you want to learn more about how we can partner together for nature, and help you to develop more sustainable business practices, contact corporate.partnerships@rspb.org.uk
