Churches Count on Nature

A woman and child are standing in a green space, ticking plants off a list in a book

Philip Lickley

During Love your Burial Ground Week/Churches Count on Nature hundreds of church communities across the country take part in a week-long nature count to monitor and celebrate the biodiversity in churchyards, which this year takes place from Saturday 6 June to Sunday 14 June.

In 2025 there were 8,668 records of nature spotted that were submitted by over 6,000 participants, representing a fantastic contribution to the understanding of the ecological value of these special places.

This initiative is jointly run by the conservation charities Caring for God’s Acre and A Rocha UK, together with the Church of England and the Church in Wales.

You can find plenty of helpful resources and comprehensive FAQs, including information on downloading and using the iNaturalist app to record your nature spotting on the Caring for God's Acre website and there is also a link to a map showing where events have been registered if you are looking for a churchyard to visit.

Individuals and groups are encouraged to register and let us know what they're up to. Registrations have now opened and you can register your event on the Caring for God's Acre website.

As part of Churches Count on Nature 2026 the Church of England with Caring for God's Acre will be repeating our popular lunchtime webinar series on different aspects of land and nature, with all sessions starting at midday and being held on Zoom.

This year's webinars are as below:

Tuesday 26 May, Beginner’s Guide to iNaturalist – why record?

Biological recording demystified with Harriet Carty and Hannah Risser of Caring for God’s Acre, who will explain why records are useful, where they go and how they can help you care for your site. They will also take you step by step through using the iNaturalist system.

Speakers

Hannah Risser has recently joined CfGA as Biodiversity Data Manager, supporting people to submit biological records, working with other organisations to share records and learn from them as well as analysing the data that we hold in order to understand how special these fantastic places are.

Harriet Carty joined CfGA in 2012, working on the National Project, and became Director of the charity in 2017. Harriet has been working in nature conservation for over 30 years. She has managed land for conservation in a wide variety of places from the Seychelles to the Orkney Islands

Book your space on CfGA's website.

Monday 8 June, Sharing Stories to Grow Hope

How can your local group maximise the impact of the work you are doing for climate and nature? This webinar from Operation Noah will include stories of local groups making a difference for biodiversity and climate on church land, as well as looking at the broader impact we can have by sharing the stories with others and as part of a wider vision for Church Land Use.

Speaker

Sharon Hall has been working on church land use with Operation Noah since 2022 and is now their Campaign Manager. Previously she worked as a university lecturer and was part of climate campaigning at COP26 in Glasgow with Tearfund and the COP26 Coalition.

Book your space on CfGA's website.

Tuesday 9 June, Churchyards for children

Join Caring for God’s Acre staff member Kirsty Stevens, who will share some creative ideas to engage children with the history and biodiversity of churchyards and burial grounds. These are all activities that have been tried and tested with real children in real churchyards and will be practical, affordable and sometimes messy…but definitely fun. Kirsty will also share free resources and costs for each project, so that you can choose activities to suit your budget.

Speaker

Kirsty Stevens has worked extensively with schools and community groups as part of CfGA’s ‘Opening the Ark’ project, and currently through ‘Heritage to Inspire’ based at Longden Road Victorian Cemetery in Shrewsbury.

Book your space on CfGA's website.

Wednesday 10 June, Making our Burial grounds a home for butterflies

The UK has lost 97% of its wildflower meadows since the second World War. Many of the remaining fragments of ancient wild flower areas are found in in our church yard and burial ground. This webinar sets out how theses vitally important wildlife areas can be managed and enhanced.

Speaker

Mike Slater of Warwickshire Butterfly Conservation has had a lifelong passion for butterflies for over 60 years. For the last 36 years he has been involved in their proactive conservation. The knowledge he has gained of the years lead to him writing of a book on conservation “Butterfly Conservation the Warwickshire approach”. This book was very well received and sold within 18 months. He he now writing a second book which will cover all UK species.

Book your space on CfGA's website.

Thursday 11 June, Lichens in churchyards

Churchyards are a significant habitat for lichens, particularly where there are no natural outcrops of rock. Of the over 2,000 British lichens, some 600 have been found growing on churchyard stone in lowland England. Many of these species are scare and some are rare in other habitats. Churches and churchyards are an environment which has not been subject to as much environmental change as elsewhere. Not only do lichens colonise surfaces of the stone, they can also be found on trees, wooden structures, benches and seats, grassy areas and pathways, and even on unusual structures like dustbin lids and metalwork.

Speaker

Mary Steer has had a lifelong interest in the natural world beginning with birds in her early teens. She started studying lichens in 2018 when a long-standing interest in geology led her to wonder what the lichens on the surface of the rocks could tell about the rock underneath. Mary has been a trustee for the Shropshire Geological Society for 16 years, including 10 years as Chair and is currently one of the contacts for the Shropshire Lichen Group.

Book your space on CfGA's website.

Friday 12 June, God’s Green Spaces

This talk outlines the range of wildlife found in our towns and cities, particularly the role of churchyards and burial grounds as relatively undisturbed, protected green space. We’ll be looking at their potential as hubs within dispersal corridors in urban areas, and some of the more interesting species found on God’s Acre. Advice will be given about recording species and ways to improve these valuable habitats.

Speaker

Dr Cath Price is engagement officer for Shropshire Wildlife Trust. Cath has worked for the Trust since 2013. She has PhD in small mammals, but is fascinated by wildlife lifelong, and thrilled to have a job that involves talking to as many people as possible in the county about all aspects of wildlife and helping them to connect with nature.

Book your space on CfGA's website.

Recordings of past webinars

The recordings of the webinars from 2021, 2022, 2024, and 2025 can be found below.

2021

Nature and climate: twin crises, shared solutions watch recording (starts at 2mins15)
Forest Church watch recording
The National Burial Grounds Survey watch recording
Finding our faith in trees watch recording
5 steps to good management of your churchyard or burial ground watch recording
Practical examples from Bristol Diocese of churchyards managed for nature watch recording
Blooming and beautiful: flower-rich grasslands watch recording
Bats in Churches watch recording
Devon Living Churchyards Project watch recording
Eco Church: Land watch recording
A beginner's guide to biodiversity and ecology watch recording
Biological recording for Churches Count of Nature and the Beautiful Burial Ground Project watch recording

2022

“Knowing your ant from your elder” Why and how to record during Churches Count on Nature watch recording
Life on the Edge Exploring the Oceans Through Science and Faith watch recording
Getting involved in the Bats in Churches project watch recording
Eco Church Land watch recording
How the Church Commissioners are managing land for climate and nature watch webinar
Blooming and Beautiful - Flower Rich Churchyards watch webinar
The Nature Recovery Network watch webinar
Sustaining church: Using your church spaces for growing food and growing mission watch webinar
Urban Hope - how to create space for nature in a small space watch webinar
Becoming Nature Positive: tackling the joint crises of biodiversity loss and climate change watch webinar

2024

Knowing your ant from your elder watch webinar
Planting your tree in the Communion Forest watch webinar

2025

People and Nature - 5 Steps to Churchyard & other burial ground management. Watch webinar.
Eco Churches count on nature! How Eco Churches are taking action for nature year-round. Watch webinar.
On the ground - practical conservation management in 2 churchyards. Watch webinar.
Here be dragons - amphibians and reptiles in burial grounds. Watch webinar.
Open to All - challenges and opportunities for accessibility in churchyards. Watch webinar.