Content

Approve the Council’s
formal response to the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined
Authority’s Draft Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS)
consultation.

Reasons for the decision

The Cambridgeshire and
Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA) is preparing a Local Nature
Recovery Strategy (LNRS) for the region. This work is part of a
national requirement under the Environment Act 2021, which asks
every area in England to produce a locally led strategy to help
reverse the decline in nature.
 
The CPCA was appointed by
Government as the “responsible authority” for this
area. Its job is to lead the process and work with other local
councils, partners and landowners to produce a strategy that is
locally relevant and deliverable.
 
Fenland District Council (FDC)
is a “supporting authority” in this process, and
officers have been working proactively and collaboratively with the
CPCA and other partners to shape the strategy and ensure
Fenland’s interests are reflected.
 
Regulation?12 of the
Environment (Local Nature Recovery Strategies) (Procedure)
Regulations 2023 establishes a statutory requirement to consult on
the draft LNRS.
 
Public consultation on the
draft LNRS for Cambridgeshire and Peterborough officially commenced
on 18 July 2025, running for an eight-week period and is set to
conclude on 11 September 2025.  Prior to
the public consultation, there was a formal 28-day consultation
period for supporting authorities, which began on 19 June 2025
– FDC formally responded to this consultation indicating that
while we support the progression of the draft LNRS to the next
stage, we reserved our right to make further, detailed comments on
the content of the strategy at the public consultation
stage.
 
FDC have reviewed the document
the document and remain broadly supportive of the draft document
but feel that there are couple of areas where the document could be
improved including:
 
Re-positioning the
documentas a supportive tool that helps shape investment in nature
recovery alongside good growth, not in opposition to
it
 
Amending Measure We6A (Fens Reservoir) to make clear that
within the reservoir itself opportunities for nature improvements
should be sought rather than just the land around the
reservoir
 
Adding a new measure to facilitate improvements adjacent to
existing Local Wildlife Sites; and
 
More minor changes that seek to improve clarity and
consistency.

Alternative options considered

The only alternative to
amending the draft response would be to refrain from submitting a
response to the consultation. However, Fenland District Council has
been actively involved throughout the preparation of the document
and is generally supportive of its overall direction. It is
important that the Council contributes constructive comments and
suggestions to help strengthen the LNRS, ensuring not only its
successful implementation but also tangible benefits for residents,
landowners, and the wider environment. For these reasons, the
option of not responding has been discounted.