Drumbrae
Drumbrae is the first of several sites where we will create woodland and improve open habitats. We are doing this to mitigate our carbon emissions from unavoidable travel while benefitting nature. View maps, check the timeline and find out more.
Vanessa McCorquodale, Community and Student Engagement Manager - Forest and Peatland Team, and Dr Matt Bell, Senior Lecturer and Honours Programme Organiser in Ecology, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, explain why the University is restoring nature at Drumbrae. Music by Jack McKenzie. One minute, 36 seconds.
Woodland creation at Drumbrae
The University of Edinburgh has purchased 431 hectares of land at Drumbrae. The land is in the Ochils, near the city of Stirling, north of Bridge of Allan. It sits in the Stirling Local Authority Area.
We'd like to increase biodiversity on the site by creating woodland and improving open habitats.
A new woodland creation proposal has been produced to map out and guide what we will do at Drumbrae. It covers:
- woodland creation
- increasing biodiversity
- engaging with local communities, local to the site and internally at the University of Edinburgh.
Volunteering opportunities
Throughout June and July there are a range of volunteering opportunities that are open to all. Please see our volunteer pages to find out more and sign up:
Review the plans
Our plans are now on the Scottish Forestry public register for 28 days (9 May - 6 June 2024)
Members of the public can view the plans below and comment here: Scottish Forestry - Public Register
Maps
- Location in Google
- Woodland Design map
- Constraints and Opportunities Map
- Access and Protection Map
- Recreation and Designation Map
- Ecological Features Map
- Cultural Heritage and Archaeology Map
- Viewpoint Analysis Map
Reports and visualisations
- Drumbrae Community Presentation
- Landscape visualisations
- Please see visual interpretations of key points of the site on this webpage
- Ecology Assessment
- Archaeology Report
Winter 2022 to spring 2023
-
Survey and analyse the site
Spring 2023
-
Begin to plan and survey the site including social, silvicultural and conservation aims
- Early community engagement
Summer 2023
- Early community engagement survey closed in June and a word cloud highlighting key themes can be found here. 79 responses were received in total.
Autumn 2023
- Formal consultation with the local community and other statutory stakeholders on a draft woodland creation proposal took place throughout the month of September. Results can be found here.
- Analyse feedback provided through the public consultation
- Update the woodland creation proposal following the consultation with communities
Winter 2023
- Seek approval from Scottish Forestry
- Following approval, the final Plan and next steps will be shared with communities on this webpage
Spring 2024
- As part of the approval process, the Plan will also be placed on Scottish Forestry’s public register for 28 days where the public will have the opportunity to comment again
- Woodland creation proposal is formally approved by Scottish Forestry
- Planning for the work onsite begins
Summer/Autumn 2024
- Operations start on site, including ground preparation and fencing
- Planning stages for the entrance using input from local residents and users of the site
From 28 August – 29 September 2023 we held a public consultation to gather input and comments from residents and users of the Drumbrae site. We’re now analysing this information and will be incorporating it into the plans where possible.
We’re grateful to everyone who took the time to submit their comments. You can see the main themes from the consultation here.
Get in touch
To contact us, please email us using our contact details below. Please state that you wish to speak with the Forest and Peatland team in your message.
General enquiries
- Social Responsibility and Sustainability
Contact details
- Work: +44 (0)131 651 3000
- Email: SRS.Department@ed.ac.uk
- @edsust
Address
- Street
Department for Social Responsibility and Sustainability
The Boilerhouse
High School Yards- City
- Edinburgh
- Post Code
- EH1 1LT
Cover image: Photo taken by Tom Wade, Airborne Research and Innovation Facility, University of Edinburgh