We are committed to sustainable development and one key way we achieve this is by building on land that has already been developed. Developing these sites, which are known as brownfield sites, helps reduce urban sprawl and protects our green open spaces.
Brownfield site regeneration can throw up some surprising challenges though as we discovered when developing our proposals for 43 new homes on Pyrles Lane in Epping.
Following the closure of the former garden nursery, the abandoned site proved to be an extremely attractive home for slow worms who were drawn to the overgrown long grass and brambles.
A protected species
Neither a worm nor a snake, but in fact, a legless lizard, the slow worm is native to the UK and are protected due to declining numbers. Growing up to 40-50cm in length and living for as long as 20 years, the worms can be found in heathland, tussocky grassland and woodland edges where they can find invertebrates to eat and a sunny patch to sunbathe.
As part of our planning proposals for Pyrles Lane, we committed to relocating the slow worms to a new location where they could continue to thrive.
Identification and relocation
Planning permission was granted in March 2024 and in April we began the long process of identification and relocation. Working closely with project manager Academy Consulting, planning consultant Phase 2 Planning and Epping Forest District Council, we engaged a team of ecologist experts from BSG Ecology to assist.
“The numbers of slow worms on the site was not certain at this point but by starting in April, we gave ourselves enough time before the worms would go into hibernation in late October or November,” said Senior Development Manager Karen Telling.
The process of catching the legless lizards is a surprisingly simple but clever one. The ecologists placed metal sheets at various points within the site which over the course of the day would absorb heat from the sun and draw the slow worms to gather underneath. The sheets were checked daily Monday – Friday and any slow worms then collected for relocation.
Between April and October, this slow but meticulous process, known as translocation, resulted in around 500 slow worms being collected.
“We were expecting to find quite a few slow worms but I think finding 500 on a two-hectare site has surprised us all,” said Karen.
“Now into October, we’re confident we have been able to find and collect all the slow worms at Pyres Lane but we’re doing two more rounds of checks to be absolutely certain.”
This next and final phase of checking involves using a machine to lightly scrape over the surface of the site. Overseen again by the team of ecologists, the debris is manually checked to confirm there are no slow worms.
The perfect new home
The important question on everyone’s lips no doubt is where have the slow worms been taken?
“We worked with the Council to find the slow worms a perfect new home,” said Karen.
“We aren’t disclosing the exact location but suffice to say, the pristine habitat of Epping Forest is an environment where we have every confidence they will continue to thrive!”
