What is rewilding and is it actually a good idea in the UK? Whether you’re interested in making your lawn into a wildflower meadow, applying for a rewilding grant or just understanding rewilding, find out how here.
We’ve got Plain English answers to the 10 most frequently asked questions about rewilding. If you’re thinking about rewilding land, then this guide is for you.
1
What is the concept of rewilding?
Rewilding means bringing back more nature (biodiversity), so what makes it different to conservation? With conservation, we try and keep things the same, but in rewilding, we try and change a site for the better.
Rewilded sites are often in poor condition at the start, so we reintroduce animals and plants to restore the food web. Much of the UK landscape is very degraded – drained, ploughed, levelled etc, and rewilders may restore natural lumps and bumps to create more diversity.
At a rewilding site, we first try to undo the damage done by humans, then, in theory, let nature take over the management. Rewilding is sometimes described as open-ended – there isn’t a goal of how the habitat should look.
In reality, rewilders often have a rough goal in mind – like at Knepp in Sussex, where the land is managed as an ‘open mosaic’ of scrub, trees and grassland. Knepp controls the number of grazing animals, helping them to reduce the speed of scrub spreading across the site.
2
What is the controversy with rewilding?
Where do we start? Just like any system for managing land, there are plenty of ways that rewilding can cause people to get upset. Unlike intensive farming, rewilding generally has a positive impact on the local landscape, but it has 3 big problems…
Illegal reintroductions
The UK used to be home to a lot more animals than it currently is – extinct species include lynx, wolf, hyena(!) and bear. These animals kept ecosystems running smoothly – lynx and wolf kept deer populations in check, protecting young trees, for example.
Many people aren’t keen to open their front door and be met by a wolf, which is perfectly understandable. But others are extremely passionate about restoring nature – bringing back lost biodiversity.
There are many who are frustrated by the slow pace of government approval for reintroduction schemes. It took a decade after the first beaver trial in England for limited beaver releases to be approved. This has led to illegal reintroductions of animals – some of these paved the way for later legal schemes, while others were bad for the animals and for rewilding.
While it is debatable how many beavers and wild boar were released deliberately or accidentally, there are some species like lynx where things are more clear. In early 2025, four lynx were released into the Cairngorms in Scotland. These harmless cats showed signs of starvation, and were too tame for wild release.
Upland Sheep Farming
Rewilding of farmland is very controversial – particularly upland sheep farms. These farmers live a hard life on low income in landscapes shaped by sheep – the hills are grassy slopes, bisected by stone walls. This landscape is beloved by many, and plays an important part in our national heritage.
However, sheep farming is largely supported by public subsidies, and the public have begun to demand more from farmers. In recent years, farm subsidies have shifted, now supporting land management which restores nature and soils. This doesn’t fit very well with upland sheep farming.
In some places, tenant farmers have been removed as rewilding is rolled out across the landscape, replacing sheep with trees. This understandably has a negative impact on public perception of rewilding. In other places, like Dartmoor, small farm clusters are working together to restore the upland landscape, farming nature rather than sheep.
Wealthy Landowners
You don’t have to be rich to do rewilding, but in our experience, it’s hard to make it profitable unless you have at least 250 acres. That’s an awful lot of land, so rewilding is now seen in many places as a rich person’s hobby, which isn’t the whole story.
The thing is, rewilding can be done at any scale, from a windowbox to a grand country estate. It’s true that you’ll usually spend a lot more on it than you’ll make, but just like any hobby, it will bring you joy. More than this, it will have a positive impact on the environment, leaving a lovely legacy for your kids.
But it’s important to point out that rewilding doesn’t pay well, so we can’t expect farmers to do it unless we – the public – help them out. That means buying produce, staying there for holidays or using their facilities for family and business events.
3
What are the 3 C’s of rewilding?
The 3 C’s are a way of understand rewilding – at least, how it works in North America. Extinct CARNIVORES are reintroduced to CORE areas of wilderness, which are joined up by green CORRIDORS.
In Europe, we don’t really have wilderness areas, and we don’t usually reintroduce carnivores, except smaller, harmless ones like lynx and pine marten. Instead, rewilding over here (including in the UK) is defined quite differently – a definition which has expanded to include smaller sites.
The ‘3 D’s’ is a better system for Europe – we restore DIVERSITY by reintroducing lost herbivores and plant species. The herbivores create natural DISTURBANCE like pigs turning over grass to expose wildflower seeds, or beavers making ponds. DISPERSAL of animals and plant seeds across the landscape is achieved not only with green corridors, but also ‘stepping stone’ habitats like ponds.
4
What are the barriers to rewilding?
The biggest barrier to rewilding is knowledge – many people believe that rewilding means abandoning land. But this usually creates a patch of messy grass, common weeds or brambles. It’s not the best thing for biodiversity.
Whether you have a windowbox or a country estate, rewilding is an active choice. It means restoring that patch of the outdoors by reintroducing native plants, creating pools of water, stopping the use of pesticides and adding bumps and lumps back in.
The good news is that there are plenty of free resources out there to help you. And you’ve come to the right place to start. Check out our guides section to find out more about rewilding, no matter what size your patch of the UK!
5
Can you get grants for rewilding?
There are some grants available for rewilding in the UK, depending on what kind of land you have. Gardeners will struggle to find grants, but smallholders and farmers have more options.
The best grant available is the Great Crested Newt Pond Scheme – Google this and you’ll find details of who runs the scheme in your area. You may be able to get ponds – small lakes, really – dug for free with large excavators.
There are lots of grants available for tree planting, but caution is advised here. Many of these are carbon offsets, so you’re getting free trees in exchange for someone producing a lot of pollution elsewhere. Most of these schemes are essentially a license to pollute and they limit what you can do with the trees – restricting coppicing or timber production. Still interested? Search for ‘tree planting grants in my area’ and you’ll find a local provider.
Biodiversity net gain (BNG) is another way of funding rewilding for large projects. Like with the offsets, you’re selling a license to destroy a bit of nature, in exchange for creating nature on your land. Unlike with the offsets, these are usually a bit better value for the planet, and the long term impact is probably positive.
Farming subsidies like the SFI are another way of funding rewilding if you’re registered with the government as a farmer. This is much easier today than it ever has been, and in 2025, even smallholders could sign up for a few £100 per hectare in benefits.
6
Who pays for rewilding?
We all pay for rewilding – much of it is funded by the public, including huge ‘private’ projects like Knepp, which received over £600,000 of taxpayer subsidies in 2022 alone.
While there are a few private projects funded exclusively by individuals – our own 3.5 acre field is an example – even here, you’ll likely see grants at work. Our Great Crested Newt ponds were paid for by housing developers, as part of an offset scheme.
Even nature reserves typically take funding from the taxpayer, alongside donations from their members. Buying and managing land is expensive, and restoring nature benefits all of us.
Whether rewilding protects you from flooding, improves your drinking water, boosts farmland productivity or brings down the cost of house insurance, you feel its economic benefits somewhere in your life. This is why it’s often funded by taxpayer subsidies, as the benefits usually outweigh the costs.
7
Is rewilding the UK really a good idea?
The UK is a very big place and our countryside needs to produce food, timber, aggregates and other resources. If we rewilded all of the UK, we would need to produce these things abroad, which would have massive costs – in terms of pollution, traffic and economics.
But there is plenty of land to go around. There are parts of our farms with poor soil quality which could be better used for nature. Similarly, there are large upland shooting estates which are burned frequently that could be managed more sensitively, creating many more jobs.
Rewilding isn’t ‘all or nothing’ – it’s a good solution for bits of land that otherwise have low value. It’s not an alternative to conservation – instead, it’s a good neighbour, creating new, wildlife-rich sites while we protect threatened species with existing nature reserves.
The most important thing is that we protect existing wildlife – keeping up conservation efforts. Next we must stop damaging practices wherever possible like spraying pesticide, discharging sewage into rivers and paving over our floodplains. Finally, we need to create new sites for nature, replacing those we’ve lost – and that’s where rewilding comes in.
Rewilding isn’t about protecting nature – it’s protecting humans from the damaging environment that we have created by destroying the wild. Nature will go on without us, but we cannot go on without nature.
8
Can I get a grant for a wildflower meadow?
Probably not. Unless you’re a farmer or a smallholder, you’re very unlikely to be eligible. Even farmers and smallholders need to jump through hoops to get access to such funding, through, for example, the Sustainable Farming Incentive. This fund was so oversubscribed that it closed early during the first round.
9
Can I just scatter wildflower seeds?
Yes, but only if you have very poor quality soil. If your grass is bare and patchy already, and you’re on a hillside, then you’re probably OK to scatter the seeds in the autumn, just before a few weeks of rain. On richer soils, where grass grows lush, dense or clumpy, then you’ll need to scarify soils first. This just means stripping off about half of the turf with a very strong rake or a machine. Then you can scatter seeds, but be warned that in lush grass, wildflowers may struggle. Always buy wildflower seeds that match your soil type and climate. Helpfully enough, Habitat Aid have made this simple, as they offer large batches of seed, by region and soil type. And their profits go to charity!
10
How do I start rewilding?
Start by understanding that rewilding is an active process – it doesn’t mean stepping back and watching. It means getting out into nature and becoming a part of the ecosystem. We’re Homo sapiens – a wild animal!
- Begin by planting native flowers – they’re easy to grow, look beautiful and attract more wildlife
- Native trees are next – a bigger commitment and only suitable if you have enough land
- A pond can be any size you like – even a container on a balcony, with a plant in it. Ponds are gold dust for wildlife
- Stop using pesticides, and replace the hose with a water butt, to reduce your water footprint
- Turn parts of your lawn (or all of it!) into a wildflower meadow, with native wildflower seeds from Habitat Aid
- Allow your hedges to soften a bit – the tops and sides are better for wildlife if they blur into the surroundings
- Replace concrete, tarmac and astroturf walkways and seating areas with permeable paving, decking or gravel (just make sure it’s accessible to all visitors)
- Use the ‘unparkable’ corners of driveways to plant drought-resilient native shrubs and trees like yew, cherry, hawthorn and whitebeam, to reduce heat in summer and support wildlife year-round
- Put up bird, bat and bee nestboxes around your garden and on the exterior (!) walls of your home
- Get a bird deterrent collar for your cat, and play with them regularly to reduce their predatory instincts
- Keep your dog on a lead in nature reserves and keep them out of lakes to reduce disturbance and insecticide pollution
- Enjoy nature! The more time you spend appreciating what is around you, the easier it’ll be to figure out what works
