A £16million project that wants to create a ‘greener and more beautiful’ Solihull is hoping new wildflowers will provide a boost for the borough’s birds, bees and residents.
The three-year Wildlife Ways project – part-funded from European Union grants – aims to encourage people to walk and cycle more, helping fight toxic emissions.
The project will see trees, wildflowers and hedgerows planted, and hopes to create ‘green corridors’ and boost biodiversity.
Among the first signs of improvement are the wildflowers that have been planted outside Solihull railway station.
Council chiefs have invited youngsters aged 16 and under to send in drawings, poems, photos and records of bugs they’ve seen in wildflower verges and meadows.
Since the project started earlier this year, 480 trees and 8,500 square metres of wildflowers have been planted in Elmdon Park, Malvern Park, Hall Road in Castle Bromwich and outside the station.
Prizes are available for the best entries while others will be posted on the project’s website.
The scheme has been repeatedly referenced as one of the council’s success stories amid mounting pressure to declare a ‘climate emergency’ in the borough.
Cabinet member for climate change, planning and housing Councillor Andy Mackiewicz, said: “As well as making Solihull a more beautiful and greener place to live, work and study in, Wildlife Ways will give a massive boost to wildlife.
“Over the next few years we will see a far greater range of bugs and pollinating insects, birds and small mammals thanks to the huge amount of planting that’s being done.
“As well as increasing the borough’s biodiversity, this will improve air quality and create a wildlife network more capable of adapting to climate change.
“People across the borough are telling us they really like the wildflowers.”
The council says parents and carers should email their children’s entries to [email protected] stating their child’s name (full name or first name only), age, email address and the location of the wildflowers that have inspired the entry.
It added that people should not include close ups of people in the photos. Records of bugs should detail which bugs, how many, and where and when they were seen.
For more information about Wildlife Ways visit www.wildlifeways.co.uk
