A church near Burnham-On-Sea has received a boost with the news that it is to get funding for environmental improvements from the Somerset Landscape Scheme, a County Council project which aims to conserve and restore the countryside.
The funding has been granted to rejuvenate St Michael’s churchyard in Brent Knoll, pictured right.
New hedges will be planted to form a secure boundary on two sides of the churchyard. And native species of hedge have been chosen to replace dead elm trees and create a new habitat for wildlife.
The Somerset Landscape Scheme provides landowners with grants and advice to encourage landscape restoration that provides clear benefits to the public.
Last year, funding from the Scheme enabled 14,000 native trees to be planted in Somerset. Other activities that have been made possible by the Scheme include orchard planting, building or repairing dry stone walls, willow pollarding and hedge-laying.
Local councillor for Brent, Alan Ham, told Burnham-On-Sea.com: “I am delighted that St Michael’s churchyard will receive a grant towards its restoration. The setting of the church in relation to the village and Brent Knoll is a unique landscape feature in this part of Somerset.”
The scheme is a collaborative partnership between Somerset County Council, the Enviroment Agency, Somerset’s District Councils, Wessex Water, English Nature, and Exmoor National Park.
