Few human-inhabited places are so ecologically rich as old churchyards, where nature's spirits thrive undisturbed for centuries.
They are in nearly every village, town and city across the UK, thousands of church buildings peppering the landscape. But while many may no longer be in regular use, the churchyards surrounding them – quiet, peaceful and often ancient – amount to what Olivia Graham, the bishop of Reading, equates to “a small national park.” The land beyond the church gate is some of the most biodiverse in the UK because it has largely stayed untouched.
“A churchyard is a little snapshot of how the countryside used to be,” says Somerset Wildlife Trust’s Pippa Rayner, who is working on Wilder Churches, a new initiative with the diocese of Bath and Wells “to enhance churchyard biodiversity across the county...”
Wilder Churches is one of several schemes that have launched across the UK with the aim of maximizing biodiversity in churchyards. David Curry leads the Living Churchyards project in south-west England, a voluntary scheme that advises local clerics on how to use the land surrounding their church for the benefit of nature...
“Wildlife, as well as needing to feed, needs to hide, shelter and nest. Churchyards offer loads of opportunities for that,” says Rayner. “They are brilliant for lots of different things: it could be birds, lots of lesser-known plants, things like lichens, mosses and liverworts, which are sort of pioneer species that will grow on stones and gravelly areas associated with a churchyard. It’s a fantastic place for bees and butterflies, but also for the less noticeable small mammals, which in turn provide food for birds of prey and owls.”
“Churchyards are some of the least polluted lands around,” says Andy Atkins, chief executive of A Rocha UK, a Christian conservation charity whose “eco-church” programme rewards churches for taking positive actions for climate and nature. Last year, it saw the highest number of sign-ups for the programme in its six-year history, with 10% of churches in England and Wales now pledging their commitment to the scheme.
St James’s Piccadilly in central London is a gold standard eco church, in part due to its efforts in promoting biodiversity in an urban space. Deborah Colvin, one of the churchwardens, says they are hopeful their churchyard can provide a green link in a concrete landscape. “Let’s have hedgehogs going overground from Regent’s Park to the river,” says Colvin. “It’s a joke, but if you start thinking like that, then what would you put in place? The sort of work that you might do in this environment … is about linkages, corridors...”
Despite a growing appreciation for how nature-rich churchyards can be, many believe there is further potential to be unlocked in the ground between the gravestones. “There is great scope within our churchyards for managing the ground so that you increase the species of plants,” says Graham Usher, bishop of Norwich and the Church of England’s lead bishop on the environment. “You can put up bug hotels, bat boxes and bird boxes; there are lots of ways that you can really make your churchyard a much more biodiverse and attractive place.”
Curry believes that the single greatest change that can be made is a more enlightened system of grass mowing. “We go into these churches to improve the biodiversity, and the first thing I ask is: ‘How often do you cut your grass?’ Then the vicar moans about spending £1,200 a year on cutting the flipping grass,” he says. “I tell them to stop cutting the grass – just cut it four times a year, at the right time. It doesn’t need to be manicured.”
As communities become increasingly involved in initiatives such as Wilder Churches, it is hoped, they too, will benefit from the boost to biodiversity.
“There is an intrinsic value to nature, and having churchyards which are thriving with nature means that they can be spaces where those who live in the community can delight in what they see, what they smell and what they hear,” says Usher. “We want to remember that churches are not places of the dead but places of the living. There is a real drive for this from members of communities and congregations who are passionate about the environment and want to support these efforts.”
Beyond the churchyards, religious institutions are increasingly calling for world leaders to take action for the climate and nature. The Church of England has pledged to reach net zero emissions by 2030. With the support of A Rocha UK, more than 2,200 churches in England and Wales ran “Climate Sunday” sermons in the lead up to Cop26.” -via Reasons to Be Cheerful, 10/31/22
