Natural England (NE) has confirmed that Skipwith Common, Yorkshire, which boasts a former Second World War bomber base, has been designated as a National Nature Reserve.

The 274-hectare (677-acre) site, which is located within the Escrick Park Estate, has already been recognised as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and a Special Area of Conservation (SAC). Part of the site, which features dry and wet heathland and a range of habitats for rare plants, dragonflies and other invertebrates, was used during the Second World War as an airfield to train Halifax Bomber crews.

The site's designation also helps to mark the 60th anniversary of the 1949 National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act - the legislation which led to the creation of National Nature Reserves, National Parks and National Trails. NE chair Poul Christensen said: "An immense amount of work has gone towards ensuring that this much-loved landscape remains both a haven for wildlife, and a place that everyone can visit and enjoy.

"Skipwith Common is one of the best examples of lowland heath in the north of England and this declaration is a fitting way to mark the 60th anniversary of the Act that first brought National Nature Reserves into being." Charlie Forbes Adams of Escrick Park Estate added: "The common is an oasis of biodiversity in the arable lands of Selby District and is a magical, almost primordial, place."

Image: Natural England