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The SUNRISE Project was a programme of habitat restoration projects delivered across Stoke-on-Trent and urban Newcastle-under-Lyme.
Funded by The European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and match funded by project partners, Staffordshire Wildlife Trust worked in partnership with Stoke-on-Trent City Council, Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council, the Environment Agency, Groundwork West Midlands, Staffordshire County Council and the Wild Trout Trust.
The programme restored and enhanced the urban green space across the urban landscape. Sixteen urban sites in North Staffordshire benefitted from a major project to create new wildlife habitats, improved water quality and reduced flooding. The project increased ecological connectivity with a particular focus on the River Trent and its tributaries.
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Staffordshire Wildlife Trust led on a suite of environmental projects including grassland enhancement and woodland management, but also delivered two significant river restoration projects in Stoke-on-Trent.
In partnership with the Environment Agency, Wild Trout Trust and Staffordshire University, Staffordshire Wildlife Trust undertook an ambitious river braiding project on the River Trent in the university grounds. Through creating backchannels, lowering the bank of the river to create wet areas and rewiggling the channel, the river was reconnected to its floodplain, helping the river to manage its own natural processes.
Since work was completed, the University has observed a reduction in flooding on the campus grounds as the river floodplain is operating more naturally.
This video discusses the work that was undertaken on the river and the floodplain.
Courtesy of the Wild Trout Trust
The image shows the River Trent as it flowed adjacent to the Victoria Ground, former home to Stoke City FC. The river channel had been heavily modified and was devoid of natural features as it flowed through a concrete channel and passed over artificial weirs.
The Victoria Ground was under housing development and provided an exciting and ambitious opportunity to relocate the river and reinstate its natural features and processes. The water was rediverted through a new channel and the old channel has disappeared beneath the new estate.
A historic moment as the River Trent changes course following the SUNRISE major conservation scheme at former Stoke City FC ground
Before: the old river flowed through a deep concrete channel. After: the new channel has been relocated and given a natural bank profile with natural features added.
By removing the concrete channel and recreating the natural river processes, we have improved the local habitat and also slowed the flow of water, helping to reduce the impact of flooding downstream.
