Protecting wildlife and enhancing nature

We’re dedicated to safeguarding native species, fostering biodiversity, and controlling the flow of water to protect vital resources.

We ensure thriving flower-rich margins, beetle banks and buffer strips are in place across Aubourn Estate to give animals and insects alike a safe haven and food source. In addition, we implement a soil management plan to support regenerative farming.

Commercial food production

Our commercial food production is carefully monitored to protect the environment. Under the new Countryside Stewardship scheme, adopted in January 2023, we committed to:

  • Provide a habitat for pollinating insects by planting 20 acres of nectar flower mix

  • Prevent farmland bird deprivation by distributing 8.45 tonnes of cereals and grains over winter, in addition to 42 acres of planted bird feed

  • ​​Minimise the need for herbicide use with 85 acres of 2-year sown legume fallow to reduce blackgrass

  • Provide a habitat for pollinating insects on beetle banks

  • Foster a habitat for bees with 0.87 acres of flower-rich margins

  • Provide a habitat for pollinating insects with over 20 miles of hedgerow

  • Provide terrain for farmland birds with 210 acres of permanent grassland

  • Prevent the transmission of pollutants with 15 acres of 4-6 metre buffer strips on cultivated land.

Flooding and forestry

Aubourn Estate is committed to sustainable stewardship, green energy, community and nature.

With over 100 acres of woodland, we’re exploring opportunities to manage these and extend them to create vital new wildlife corridors and improve biodiversity.

Our land borders the rivers Witham and Brant and water is always a vital concern. In the 1980s, we committed to allow up to 800 acres of the estate to be flooded if Lincoln City Centre is at risk.

Climate change has had a major effect on flood risk which was anticipated to occur in the 30–50 year range. In reality there have been 8 major flooding events in the last 17 years which is clearly not sustainable for agriculture. In co-operation with others, we are investigating the possibility of developing schemes to potentially build a much larger permanent wetland floodplain on the Brant and a "re-wiggling" of the River Witham to slow the flow, increase the holding capacity and reduce the flood risk to the city.

A wetland scheme has already been created on the estate, established in 2010. It is an outstanding success and has attracted numerous endangered and rare bird species, including the emblematic Avocet.

Green Energy and greener pastures ahead

Aubourn Estate is engaged in a proposal with Fosse Green Energy to house part of a solar park south-west of Lincoln. Composed of solar panels on land bordering the A46 along Fosse Way, it will provide clean, green energy for the grid and considerable benefit to the surrounding areas.

It will also allow us the opportunity to make the estate a net zero business. We believe that our diverse land, opportune placement and willingness to make major ecological enhancements will ensure that this will be an exemplar for the many solar parks required to fulfil the Governments net zero objectives.

It is our goal to produce green energy, alongside commercial food production whilst improving habitats and making space for nature and public access. Details of our proposal for shielding and nature enhancement are available via the Fosse Green’s website.

Free access and essential enterprise

We support a growing number of commercial and leisure enterprises on the estate. Some are housed in our farmyards and buildings and some on the land itself, such as livery, horse rides, a small commercial partridge shoot and a thriving floristry business along with sheep and cattle grazing. We are actively looking to promote further use of our farm buildings which can provide valuable workspaces so enquire here about commercial property to let, including offices, workshops, and storage.

There are also a great many footpaths that criss-cross the estate and we are working up plans to provide additional permissive footpaths and a dedicated dog exercise park, to run along side our existing horse-riding route.

Get in touch today to learn more.