Glorious Cotswold Grasslands began in 2019 as an exciting and ambitious 3-year project funded by the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation to create the largest network of wildflower-rich Jurassic limestone grassland in the country, but has proven so successful that we are continuing the programme indefinitely.

Building on the legacy of the Save our Magnificent Meadows project in the Cotswolds, the aim was to secure the long-term management of these precious grasslands through farming and community engagement, alongside practical restoration work. From 2019-2025 we have initiated restoration work on nearly 500 hectares of land throughout the Cotswold National Landscape – an amazing achievement. Funding sources are always changing but currently restoration work can be funded through a variety of grants, partnerships and through the new Sustainable Farming Incentive option for management and restoration of species-rich grassland (GRH6), through the Farming in Protected Landscapes programme, an ongoing partnership with Thames Water, and a new partnership with Wessex Water in the south of the Cotswolds.