Landscape Connections
Loch Lomond & The Trossachs is Scotland’s first and most accessible National Park, with a unique woodland mosaic at the heart of it.
Our development funding is supporting a new partnership between the National Park Authority, RSPB Scotland and Loch Lomond & The Trossachs Countryside Trust. It will allow the project team to shape plans ahead of a potential delivery grant to restore woodland habitats and connect a wider network.
The project focuses on globally threatened native woodlands, including temperate rainforest, ancient Caledonian pinewoods and upland woodland. These habitats support rare plants and birds and provide clean air and water, flood prevention and places for people to connect with nature.
It’s being designed and delivered alongside communities and partners, bringing together organisations like conservation charities and farming networks with the National Park’s Future Nature Route Map. And local communities are helping to shape what really matters to them, including:
- practical training and job creation
- sustainable business models
- nature-friendly land management and improved deer management
- opportunities to experience, understand and connect with nature
Simon Jones, Director of Environment and Visitor Services, Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park Authority, said: "Over the next two years, we'll work closely with local people to shape detailed plans that reflect their knowledge and needs, from removing invasive rhododendron to training the next generation of conservation practitioners.
"If successful, this development phase could lead to an eight-year programme delivering one of Scotland's most ambitious and accessible examples of nature restoration at scale, restoring globally rare habitats while ensuring the people who live, work and visit the National Park are at the heart of the solution."
Find out more about our Landscape Connections strategic initiative, including our grant to the Solway Firth.
