Press Releases - 2025

The Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT) is very pleased to announce that Jeremy Finnis DL has been selected as chairman-elect of GWCT. Jeremy will take over from our current chairman, Sir Jim Paice, when he steps down in July 2026.

The national annual census of farmland birds, run by the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT) and supported by the NFU, is returning in February next year when it will be launched from its birthplace, the Trust’s demonstration farm, the Allerton Project. 

Tests have been carried out to establish the levels of methane being emitted by sheep living off a natural forage diet in the Yorkshire Dales National Park. The Forage for CH4nge project – funded by Innovate UK – is bringing together farmers and scientists to better understand how traditional breeds and different pastures can help reduce the environmental impact of sheep farming.

New research suggests badgers are one of the main threats to the survival of red-listed ground-nesting birds including lapwing and curlew, and that the risk of nests being predated increased during cold or dry weather when their stable diet of earthworms is less accessible.

The annual counting and tagging of juvenile wild Atlantic salmon on the River Frome in Dorset has shown a dramatic decline in numbers of fish being captured for a second year in succession, indicating a worrying downward trend which is reflected across the UK and Europe.

A new project by the GWCT is underway to tag common snipe in three locations across the British Isles. The study aims to uncover where these elusive waders migrate to breed during the summer, while also allowing us to understand the reasons behind their decline and how best to support their conservation.

"Government, starting with this month’s Budget, need to recognise this fundamental truth: land managers are conservation's frontline..."

The winners of the inaugural Schöffel Countryside Awards have been crowned at a ceremony in central London – a celebration of private land managers, farms and partnerships whose dedication to wildlife management and conservation is helping to improve the health of the British countryside.

Taylor’s Port is delighted to announce that from the 20^th of October 2025, they will be collaborating with The Secret Bottle Shop in Hereford to help raise funds for the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust (GWCT), a leading UK charity conducting conservation science to enhance the British countryside for public benefit.