Plan to protect and enhance Northamptonshire's Ise Valley launching this month

A blueprint to protect and enhance the natural environment of North Northamptonshire’s Ise Valley is set to launch in September.

At its helm are flagship projects like the Ise Valley Greenway, a sustainable walking and cycling route from Wellingborough to Corby, South Meadows at Wicksteed Park, looking to restore the natural flow of the River Ise and Boughton Estate, creating new habitats, redesigning water structures enabling fish movement upstream and embracing natural flood management by creating a floodwater storage zone.

The Ise Valley Strategic Plan has been written to bring a focused approach to projects that will improve access through and the quality of the valley.

These will be delivered across an area stretching from the historic fields of Naseby, across to the village of Geddington, heading north to Corby and south to Wellingborough.

The Ise Valley, which covers a large swathe of North Northamptonshire, is vital to the economic, sustainable and environmental growth of the region.

In recognition of this, the large-scale and ambitious plan not only aims to enhance the quality of the valley’s natural environment for people and wildlife but also to create socio-economic benefits through tourism opportunities for local communities, provide for natural flood management and mitigate against climate change.

The plan, alongside the Ise Valley Greenway and South Meadows projects, will be showcased at a launch event at Wicksteed Park, Kettering, and where work has already started on the South Meadows to restore the natural habitat.

Cllr David Brackenbury, the council’s executive member for growth and regeneration, said: “The launch of the Ise Valley Strategic Plan is a great moment for North Northamptonshire.

"The valley may not be well-known by some people in the region, but this plan is the start of putting it on the map, celebrating everything it has to offer and building on the benefits it will bring to residents and businesses.”

The strategic plan, a vision of the future for the region, was prepared by the Nene Rivers Trust (formerly the River Nene Regional Park) on behalf of and with input from the River Ise Partnership, a collaborative partnership of organisations who have joined forces to secure a green future for the valley.