AS A parish church, we’re fortunate enough to have a churchyard – and an incredible four acres of it, too.
A churchyard is a unique space in the community; a place of reflection and peace, of prayer and remembering, and a place of unique biodiversity and flourishing.
We try to manage it carefully, conscious of all these different elements.
The biodiversity in a churchyard is so precious because, having been a place of burial for hundreds of years, nature has been allowed to flourish and develop, relatively untouched by human cultivation or interference.
This means that it plays host to many distinctive habitats and creatures.
Churches are encouraged to allow this to develop – indeed in a report published in May by rewilding campaigners WildCard, the Church of England was reminded once again of the urgency of allowing nature to recover in church-owned land.
In our own churchyard we leave certain areas of the land to grow as a wild summer meadow, whilst keeping other, more utilised areas, as formal land with shorter grass.
In the last few years, we’ve seen many benefits of this including (anecdotally) increased numbers of insects and birds.
Local schools and uniformed organisations have had opportunities to get involved in discovering our wildlife, too, through trips to the churchyard for bug hunts.
Our churchyards, like many others, rely on the hard work of volunteers and financial donations to maintain and protect them.
If you’re interested in helping out, please visit our website for more information.
Revd Hannah Higginson is rector of All Saints Church, Norreys, which meets on Sundays at 9.30am.
For information, visit: allsaintswokingham.org.uk/churchyard
