Overview
Make It Wild started in 2010 with a single tired field in North Yorkshire. Helen and Christopher Neave bought it, planted it and kept going. Fifteen years later the organisation looks after more than 600 acres across 18 sites.
It is not a large charity with a national profile. It is a practical outfit that buys land, restores it and then stays with it, which is the part most tree-planting schemes skip.
How They Work
The method is straightforward: acquire land with potential, create and restore habitat, then care for it over decades. That means native woodland planting, pond and wetland creation, wildflower meadow restoration and reduced management where nature is doing better on its own.
People are part of it too. Volunteer days, school and group visits, forest bathing and wildlife events all run from the sites, and tree dedications and business partnerships help fund new land purchases.
The Sites
Bank Woods, acquired in 2017 near Summerbridge outside Harrogate, is the flagship. Its 111 acres run over steep gradients and include internationally important ancient meadows, giving an unusual range of habitats in one place.
Around it sits a spread of smaller holdings, each restored to suit its own soil, water and history. Together they work as a network rather than a single estate, which is a realistic model in a landscape of small fields.
Impact
Over 150,000 native trees planted and cared for, 18 sites restored and more than 600 acres held for nature is a substantial record for an organisation of this size. Birds are returning, new ponds are holding life and young woodland is closing over ground that was previously worn out.
How to Support Make It Wild
You can dedicate trees, join volunteering and events, book a visit, or talk to them about a business partnership. Details are at makeitwild.co.uk.
Further Resources
Watch
The Incredible Power of Rewilding with Helen Neave
Make It Wild co-founder Helen Neave on restoring land and bringing wildlife back.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who are Make It Wild?
Make It Wild is a UK nature restoration organisation founded in 2010 by Helen and Christopher Neave. It buys and cares for land, restores habitats and plants native woodland, working mainly in North Yorkshire but with sites across the UK.
How much land does Make It Wild look after?
More than 600 acres across 18 restored and managed sites, with over 150,000 native trees planted and cared for in more than 15 years of work.
Where is Bank Woods?
Bank Woods is Make It Wild's main site, a 111 acre (45 hectare) holding near Summerbridge, close to Harrogate in North Yorkshire, bought in 2017. Its steep slopes and internationally important ancient meadows make it the base for most of the organisation's events and volunteering.
Can businesses work with Make It Wild?
Yes. Alongside individual tree dedications and volunteering, Make It Wild works with businesses on tree planting and habitat creation as part of their environmental commitments, with the land held and managed for the long term rather than planted and forgotten.
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