full records for the SBIs in Stockport, including the site boundaries and descriptions.22

  1. In Greater Manchester there is a register of Regionally Important Geological Sites (RIGS) which are selected according to their value for education, scientific study, historic significance or aesthetic qualities. In Stockport, as of 2026, there are five of these sites and they have the same level of protection as SBIs.
  2. Local Nature Reserves (LNRs)23 are a statutory designation made by local authorities as sites with wildlife or geological features that are of special interest locally. To qualify for LNR status, a site must be locally important for wildlife, geology, education or public enjoyment. They offer people opportunities to study and learn about nature or simply to enjoy it. Designation of a Local Nature Resources involves a commitment to positive management and therefore requires the allocation of resources. The council has declared fourteen LNRs; which are:
  3. Heaton Mersey Common;
  4. Mersey Vale Nature Park;
  5. Tangshutts;
  6. Crookiley Woods;
  7. Chadkirk;
  8. Wright's Wood;
  9. Woodbank Park;
  10. Abney Hall;
  11. Poise Brook;
  12. Gatley Carrs;
  13. Etherow Country park;
  14. Happy Valley;
  15. Reddish Vale; and
  16. Carr Wood.
  17. Biodiversity constitutes the living components of natural capital and feeds into wider environmental benefits, however there is a 69% decline in species globally as reported by WWF in the Living Planet Report 202224. Consequently, securing a resilient ecological network will not only help deliver the wider natural capital benefits for Stockport, help prevent further species decline, and respond to the requirements of the NPPF.
  18. The council has produced an ecological network for the borough25 which incorporates existing ecological assets ('core areas'), spaces that improve connectivity between ecological assets ('linear corridors') and a number of small sites that can act as 'stepping stones' across which certain species can move. Functional connectivity of the ecological network refers to the ability of different species to move through the landscape, whilst taking into consideration their dispersal capabilities, behaviours and habitat requirements. This is considered

22 See www.data.gov.uk/dataset/81cbf1a0-6304-470c-ade8-60272be0d219/sites-of-biological-importance-sbi-in-greater-manchester

23 Designated under Section 21 of the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949

24 See www.wwf.org.uk/sites/default/files/2023-05/WWF-Living-Planet-Report-2022.pdf.

25 See www.stockport.gov.uk/evidence-planning-policy/environment-and-heritage.

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