LIFE R4ever Kent

27/05/2026

Rivers have not always looked like they do today.

Many of our rivers have been straightened or channelised for land drainage or flooding reasons.

If you look at historic maps, many rivers, including parts of the River Kent used to be much more meandering, with natural bends and varied channels. Straightening these channels has reduced habitat diversity and changed how the river behaves.

River restoration is about reversing some of these changes, providing them space to move and support wildlife.

The photos show how you can clearly see this using historical maps on the River Lune, near Arkholme. One is older, one is more modern and one is a composite showing both river shapes.

Reproduced with the permission of the National Library of Scotland

27/05/2026

A major milestone reached – the first of our workstreams is complete! Contacting over 300 land managers, delivering 10 water pollution workshops, completing 50 walkovers in the catchment, gaining over 30 land management agreements and undertaking a year round phosphate study our wonderful Catchment Management Advisers Richard and Joe are moving on.

With their advice and engagement helping to reduce diffuse pollution and raise awareness, they will be greatly missed but their positive work will continue to help the SSSI/SAC for years to come!

All the best guys!

20/05/2026

As with all restoration efforts, learning from others and seeing what’s happening in neighbouring systems is invaluable ⛰️💧

As part of the LIFE R4ever Kent project, our FBA team joined colleagues from Natural Resources Wales to explore freshwater pearl mussel conservation in action—visiting river sites, learning about mussel silos, and spotting mussels in the riverbed through a bathyscope 👀. This was our view of the river bed.

Huge thanks to Thomas Doherty-Bone for sharing his expertise.

Insights we’re excited to bring back to the Kent catchment. 💧

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13/05/2026

The LIFE R4Ever Kent project has a new project officer!
A big welcome to Jana, who brings a wealth of experience working in species recovery, surveying, biodiversity and flooding.
Working for South Cumbria Rivers Trust, Jana will oversee the delivery of significant river restoration projects over the next two years. Keep an eye out for updates.

04/05/2026

A key aim of the R4ever Kent LIFE project is supporting the recovery of protected species by restoring the river’s biological resilience.
As part of this, we’ve carried out white clawed crayfish habitat surveys across the Kent catchment.
We record features such as riverbed material, channel structure, flow diversity and the availability of refuges like cobbles and natural shelter. These observations help us understand where habitat is functioning well, the pressures limiting resilience, and where improvements could be most beneficial.
This evidence directly informs our restoration design – guiding where we work and how we shape the river to improve refuge habitat and strengthen the river’s biological resilience.

28/04/2026

Tip number 76 for Health and Safety at Work day….pick buoyancy aids not lifejackets if your work in water involves a lot of bending over!

24/04/2026

https://iucn.org/press-release/202604/almost-half-european-freshwater-fishes-risk-extinction-new-iucn-red-list
Not happy reading, but highlights how important it is for us to be working on improving our rivers.

The updated European Red List of Freshwater Fishes – the most comprehensive assessment in 15 years – reveals little evidence of species recovery and calls for urgent action to protect Europe’s aquatic biodiversity.Nearly six in ten native European freshwater fish species are now of elevated co...

15/04/2026

As part of Natural Kendal's special event on the River Kent, our Catchment Management Advisor Joe Rigby will be reporting on the results of our year-long study examining water pollution and its specific impacts on the River Kent Special Area of Conservation. Come along to the Eddington Centre, Kendal on Thursday 23rd April, for 7pm. Joe will talk about “Reducing pollution and enhancing habitats in the River Kent Special Area of Conservation,” alongside Isobel Stoddart, Chair of the Clean River Kent Campaign, discussing their citizen science programme looking at sources of pollution in the River Kent.

https://naturalkendal.org.uk/events/clean-river-kent-campaign-crkc/

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/clean-river-kent-campaign-protecting-a-local-river-tickets-1982426120893?utm-campaign=social&utm-content=attendeeshare&utm-medium=discovery&utm-term=listing&utm-source=cp&aff=ebdsshcopyurl

https://facebook.com/events/s/clean-the-river-kent-campaign/1325923286229296/

08/04/2026

What is river restoration? 🌊
River restoration is about helping rivers recover and become more resilient for wildlife and people. Resilience is improved by addressing hydrological, morphological, biological, chemical, and societal issues across the catchment.

On the River Kent, the LIFE project aims to revive, revitalise and restore resilience through a range of interventions, including tree planting, removing redundant revetments, and creating new fish refuges and spawning habitat.
Before any work takes place in the river, baseline data is used to shape restoration designs, helping ensure the work delivers real environmental benefits.

Over the coming weeks, we’ll be sharing more about the different elements of river restoration design and how they’re helping shape a healthier River Kent.

25/03/2026

The FBA monitors growth and development of propagated mussels by measuring length along the longest anteroposterior axis of the shell. Mussels greater than 5mm can be measured using electronic or manual callipers (Picture 1) whilst mussels encysted on fish gills can be measured with a microscope and graticule (Picture 2) and calculated using a formula that depends on the microscopic magnification.