Heal Rewilding

Overview

Heal Rewilding is one of the newest and most distinctive rewilding charities in the UK. Founded in 2020, it was created around a simple but powerful idea: the most direct way to rewild England is to buy land and give it back to nature, permanently.

Unlike charities that work with existing landowners, Heal Rewilding raises money from the public to acquire lowland English farmland and then lets it rewild. The model is designed to be replicable, transparent and easy for supporters to understand: every donation helps expand the area of England that will be wild forever.

Mission & Model

Heal Rewilding's mission is captured in its tagline: "Heal the land, heal nature, heal ourselves." The charity targets land that is often intensively farmed and has limited existing wildlife value, because this is where rewilding can deliver the most dramatic change.

Management is kept light-touch. Natural regeneration is allowed to take hold, grazing is introduced where needed to mimic missing wild herbivores, and the sites are monitored to track how biodiversity returns. The charity publishes updates so supporters can see exactly what their money is achieving.

Heal Somerset

Heal Somerset, acquired in late 2022 and announced in early 2023, is the charity's proof of concept. The 460-acre former dairy farm near Bruton cost £5.25 million and is now being transformed into a rewilding site that will be protected in perpetuity.

Early management has included conservation hay-cutting on a small portion of the land to mimic the grazing pressure of large herbivores, alongside natural regeneration and tree planting where appropriate. The site is also being developed as a place for education, research and quiet public access.

Heal North & the 2050 Vision

Heal Rewilding's ambition extends far beyond Somerset. The charity is developing a second site, Heal North, in northern England and has stated that it has secured financial support for the project. The long-term goal is a Heal site in every English county by 2050, together covering almost 25,000 acres.

That target is aspirational and depends on continued fundraising, but it gives the charity a clear, measurable mission that supporters can rally around.

How to Support Heal Rewilding

Donations are the clearest way to help because they go directly towards buying and restoring land. The charity also runs a monthly "Heal Highs" newsletter and offers updates on its sites, events and campaigns.

Visit healrewilding.org.uk to donate, sign up for the newsletter or learn more about visiting Heal Somerset.

Related Grange Project Content

We spoke to Heal Rewilding in Episode 029 of the Wilder Podcast. For practical advice on funding nature restoration, see our landowners guide to rewilding funding.