Warwickshire Wildlife Trust has asked for a number of changes to the Coventry Development Plan to enable the plan to achieve its sustainability objective. Without these changes the Trust considers that wildlife diversity in the city will continue to be lost.

Nine Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation (SINCs) are allocated within the draft plan for development. All these sites support important habitats, which enable beautiful species such as the skylark and bee orchids to live in the city. If the plan is implemented as it stands the City’s already limited biodiversity will not be sustained.

The Trust’s Conservation Manager, Andrew Thompson, said:

"The two most worrying aspects of the draft plan are firstly that wildlife sites are allocated for housing development, when there is more than enough land available of lower conservation value to meet the City’s targets. Secondly that developers of the nine wildlife sites allocated for development are not being required to provide full packages of compensation and mitigation measures to minimise the impacts of the developments."

He added:

"The Trust has objected to the allocation of land at Holdsworth Crescent and Baginton Fields for housing the proposed commercial developments at jaguar Whitley and Alderman’s Green and the construction of the third phase of the north-south road. In addition we are seeking greater safeguards for wildlife in the redevelopment of Foleshill Gasworks and the Coventry Colliery.

"It is important that real commitments are made to nature conservation if the Council’s target of sustainable development is to be achieved and the people who live and work in Coventry are to be able to enjoy a high quality of life in the twenty first century."