Lindow Moss

Lindow Moss, a wetland landscape of international archaeological, historical and ecological importance, lies on the western side of Wilmslow. It has been cut for peat for centuries, initially by hand and more recently using mechanised diggers that have caused considerable damage, exposing deep layers of peat to the atmosphere and destroying animal and plant habitats. Transition Wilmslow has campaigned for more than a decade to raise awareness of this extraordinary landscape, its importance for climate change and biodiversity and its contribution to our shared heritage. We have organised workshops, a Guild Day School, a plant hunt and a great many walks for different audiences. In 2020, responding to local concern about removal of peat from the site long after peat cutting had officially ceased, we convened a Lindow Moss Community Forum where we shared information about the progress of the restoration of the Moss as well as talks from invited speakers. We also established a Lindow Moss Restoration Group bringing together Mossland experts and local people.

The long awaited restoration of the peat bog began with the installation of a sluice gate in 2022, changing it from a landscape that emits harmful greenhouse gases to one that absorbs them, helping in the fight against climate change, and from a nature denuded place to one rich in beauty and biodiversity. Transition Wilmslow continues to press for information about the progress of the restoration.

The “cut over peat bog” (the area where commercial peat cutting has taken place) is part of the wider Lindow Moss Landscape, extending beyond Wilmslow to Mobberley and Great Warford. The Lindow Moss Landscape Partnership, established in 2024, is a collective of community organisations, landowners, relevant Local Authorities, academics and charitable organisations that are committed to working together in order to conserve, restore and interpret the wider Lindow Moss Landscape for the benefit of nature, the climate and people. You can read the prospectus here.

In order to reach a wider audience of local people and businesses across the Moss, Transition Wilmslow is building on the success of the Community Forum by establishing the Friends of Lindow Moss which launched in February 2024; join the mailing list here.

Discover Lindow 2024 was a year-long festival of events organised by Transition Wilmslow commemorating the 40th anniversary of the finding of Lindow Man, Britain’s most famous bog body, in the bog in 1984. More details can be found at www.discoverlindow.org

Mission and Vision

The Friends of Lindow Moss, publicly launched in January 2024 as a group within Transition Wilmslow, is an inclusive group that fosters community and public interest and participation to

protect, conserve and enhance the nature (biodiversity and ecosystem processes) and cultural heritage of Lindow Moss, as well as advocating the Moss

as an educational resource and promoting the benefits that this unique landscape can have for public health and wellbeing.

The Friends of Lindow Moss aim to achieve this through a programme of events and activities such as:

Guided walks, art displays and other cultural and social events,
Indoor/online talks on various topics such as the wildlife and plants to be found on the Moss, its history and its importance as a carbon sink,
Practical conservation and support for volunteers to help with the restoration of the Moss such as water sampling and invasive species management,
Publication of a regular quarterly newsletter providing up-dates on the restoration of the Moss and associated news, events and opportunities.

We aim to engage with a broad range of people whether their interest in this landscape is its bio-diversity, the contribution to carbon reduction a healthy peat bog can make, its rich social and economic history, or as a place for peaceful exercise, recreation and reflection.