Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust wants to take over Titchfield Haven nature reserve

Titchfield Haven National Nature Reserve, Hill Head Picture: Colin Grice

A wildlife trust says it is interested in taking over a nature reserve from a cash-strapped council.

Hampshire County Council is closing Haven House, the visitors' centre and cafe at Titchfield Haven nature reserve.

The closure, on Friday, is to save money and tackle a £1.8m budget blackhole connected to the site. But now Hampshire & Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust says it not only wants to take over the buildings, but that it wants to run the whole nature reserve.

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The sale of Haven House cannot be finalised for at least six months due to Fareham Borough Council listing it as an asset of community value, as requested by the Hill Head Residents' Association.

In a letter to the council, Debbie Tann, the wildlife trust's chief executive said: ‘We will work closely with the local community through the Hill Head Residents Association in developing our bid, and it might be that our bid becomes a joint bid or there may be partnership arrangement of some sort with the community.

‘The trust will also develop a proposal for the potential future ownership and management of Titchfield Haven National Nature Reserve, working closely with Hampshire County Council.’

Pamela Charlwood, co-chair of the resident’s association said: ‘There are two options, either they do both the nature reserve and the visitors centre or they do the reserve and our new charity that we’re setting up does the visitor centre.

‘We don’t know what will make the most sense to them over the next few months but we’re setting up our charity “Titchfield Haven Community Hub” and that will be ready and waiting and working alongside the wildlife trust or working in the background.

‘We’re positive, people are absolutely delighted. They agree that the wildlife trust will do a very good job of the nature reserve if they can reach a job with Hampshire County Council.

‘I think we’re seeing it as a community hub - like Lee-on-the-Solent and Elson for instance when their libraries closed they reopened them as community hubs. That’s a good model and we’re willing to learn from them.’

‘It’s going to be a busy year and what’s lovely is that people are already writing in to the residents association and saying, assuming this all moves forward positively, they would be happy to contribute something.’