Ingrebourne Valley is a local nature reserve (LNR) in

Hornchurch Hornchurch is a suburban town in East London, England, and part of the London Borough of Havering. It is located east-northeast of Charing Cross. It comprises a number of shopping streets and a large residential area. It historically formed ...

in the

London Borough of Havering The London Borough of Havering () in East London, England, forms part of Outer London. It has a population of 259,552 inhabitants; the principal town is Romford, while other communities are Hornchurch, Upminster, Collier Row and Rainham. The ...

. It is owned and managed by Havering Council, and has a visitor centre managed by the

Essex Wildlife Trust The Essex Wildlife Trust (EWT) is one of 46 wildlife trusts which cover the United Kingdom. The EWT was founded in 1959, and it describes itself as Essex's leading conservation charity, which aims to protect wildlife for the future and the people ...

. Most of it is in

Hornchurch Country Park Hornchurch Country Park is a 104.5-hectare park on the former site of Hornchurch Airfield, south of Hornchurch in the London Borough of Havering, east London. Site The River Ingrebourne passes through the park and if forms part of Thames Ch ...

west of the

River Ingrebourne The River Ingrebourne is a tributary of the River Thames 27 miles (43.3 km) in length. It is considered a strategic waterway in London, forming part of the Blue Ribbon Network. It flows through the London Borough of Havering roughly from ...

, but there are also areas north and south of the park which are part of the LNR. It has a wide range of habitats, including woodland, grassland, the river and marshes. It is an important site for a range of species of plants, animals and birds, including great crested newts, slow worms, the harvest mouse and the water vole. It has a complicated relationship with other nature reserves in the area. Hornchurch Country Park is a Site of Borough Importance for Nature Conservation, Grade I, and Ingrebourne Valley

Site of Metropolitan Importance for Nature Conservation Site of Nature Conservation Interest (SNCI), Site of Importance for Nature Conservation (SINC) and regionally important geological site (RIGS) are designations used by local authorities in the United Kingdom for sites of substantive local nature ...

has different boundaries from the LNR of the same name, lying east, north and south of the country park. Part of the LNR is also in the

Ingrebourne Marshes Ingrebourne Marshes are a 74.8 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Hornchurch in the London Borough of Havering. Ingrebourne Valley Local Nature Reserve includes a small part of the SSSI west of the River Ingrebourne. The si ...

Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of ...

. The site has a car park at its northern end off Hacton Lane.

References

External links

Friends of Ingrebourne Valley and Hornchurch Country Park
* {{Essex Wildlife Trust Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Havering Local nature reserves in Greater London Nature reserves in the London Borough of Havering Essex Wildlife Trust