The Downlands Trust is an independent registered charity run by a small volunteer board of Trustees. The charity was founded in 2008 to raise funds to help support countryside conservation and management schemes across NE Surrey and adjoining urban fringe areas of south London. The majority of the sites that we support are of high conservation value and many are Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) which were brought together in 2019 to form the South London Downs National Nature Reserve. Click here for a map showing our area of operation.
Initially the charity was funded exclusively by membership subscriptions, donations and grant applications, but in recent years has been boosted by generous corporate sponsorship. As well as fundraising we aim to promote the conservation, protection and improvement of the countryside to the public.
Our funds are used to provide grants to local organisations to enable, for example, the purchase of tools, livestock, fencing materials and countryside furniture including benches, noticeboards and signs. Much of our support is directed towards chalk downlands, but we also help to maintain and protect woodlands and other amenities for wildlife including ponds.
Our newsletters provide more information about the work of the Trust: