Laura Nunes moved to Newmarket 3 years ago from the city longing for the hum of nature, only to find near silence in the fields. 

In her anguish, she stumbled upon the Felixstowe Community Nature Reserve, and was immediately inspired to make her corner of the world sing with the sounds of nature once more. 

She's come together with two like-minded mums of young children to help build not only a community, but a wilder future for generations to come. 

Inspired by Neighbours: Newmarket Community Nature Reserve

We are experiencing a man-made climate crisis. It is very easy to say that industry contributes more to this than the individual. 

However, change has to start somewhere. We can sit back and accept the destruction of the ecosystems we live alongside or we can make small changes in our day-to-day life and learn to co-habit peacefully with them. 

There are approximately 68 million people in the UK. If we all make a small change to our homes and daily lives, we can make a big impact.

I moved to Newmarket three years ago from a city and noticed how little wildlife I saw comparatively. This surprised me considering the amount of open fields and countryside surrounding us. As I have walked around our town, I often noted how under-utilised areas were. A few emails to various local authorities proved fruitless and for a while I left it at that, not really sure how to progress my ideas further.

 I first got the idea for a community nature reserve whilst I was madly scrolling during one of my baby's many night feeds. I stumbled across Felixstowe Community Nature Reserve so I sent them a message. Dr Adrian Cooper, who set up Felixstowe's initiative replied and has been incredibly helpful.

Since then, I have been joined by the lovely Cathy and Ibolya who have added their talents to the project.

We are three mums of young children from very different professional backgrounds with a common goal - to protect our local environment for future generations.

Nature has always been a refuge for me but now being a mum of two has made me realise how important it is to protect what we have for future generations.

We are not just doing this for wildlife though. There is so much literature that suggests being outside positively affects the individual's overall wellbeing. Indeed, recent research from Natural England has shown that improving peoples access to nature could save the NHS £2billion! 

There are so many barriers to this though.

We have some beautiful natural spaces in Suffolk but not everyone has the money or transport to access these. Through this scheme we can bring small pockets of nature into the town centre for those who cannot get out. We hope to make wildlife and it's physical and mental health benefits more accessible. 

Perhaps you don't have a garden. Perhaps money is an issue. Maybe you rent and your landlord won't allow you to plant. Do you have a health condition limiting you? 

Our vision is to bring people together. If you can help with donations of plants, providing an outside space for someone who doesn't have one, helping someone who needs assistance to get outside or anything else you can think of please get in touch.

We can't promise to help every issue but we will do our very best to include everyone who wants to be included. First and foremost, this project is about community. We all have to help each other.

Newmarket Town Council is currently discussing how they may be able to help us. We hope to get local businesses on board too. Cafes and pub gardens, any business with a car park or window boxes. Every little bit helps. If your business doesn't have an outside space they could donate gardening tools, seeds, bulbs, plants and trees.

This project is completely in its infancy, but our 5-year goal is to achieve an area the size of a football field dedicated to wildlife in the town. If everybody does just a little, we can make a big change. We ask that you pledge 3 square yards but if you don't have that, pledge what you can - it could be a window box of pollinator friendly plants or a bird box on the wall of your flat. If you have more space that's great too. It all adds up. If we utilise small patches in our town efficiently, we can create a corridor for wildlife. There are so many small areas that could be improved to benefit both wildlife and the community.

If you really don't have any access at home what about your workplace, school or does your neighbour need help with their garden? Ask if they would like to get on board. There are so many ways you can get involved you don't have to have a garden.

Pledge your space with your postcode to Newmarket Community Nature Reserve. It is still your space and you can do what you want with it. Make a pond, plant some bee friendly plants, build a log pile - the possibilities are endless. We will share ideas and educational posts to guide you. 

If you are interested in joining us, please contact Newmarketcnr@gmail.com.