Assurances are being sought to safeguard Harborough's ambitious rewilding project

The scheme - which could see hundreds of acres of fields turned into 'natural rewilding' sites north of the town - seemed to be in doubt following a dramatic budget meeting in February, in which Harborough District Council’s (HDC) ruling coalition (at the time) suffered a setback when a proposal to 'pause' the proposal was voted in by Conservatives, supported by Independent and Reform UK members. The Tories later went on to take over control of the council.

Now in opposition, the former council leader Phil Knowles - who at the time described the vote as a "wrecking motion by the Tories" - has asked for assurances that the project will not be scrapped.

Cllr Knowles (Lib Dem, Market Harborough Great Bowden and Arden) has asked officers for an urgent update - but said he was "told that the Conservative controlling group have as yet failed to set a date for a briefing and no discussion has taken place".

HDC leader Simon Whelband (Con, Kibworths) said his party are going through the full details of the scheme and that no decision has been made yet.

Cllr Knowles said: "This is a deeply concerning lack of action on such a major project.

"It should have been a priority once the Conservatives clinched their power grab but as far as I can get from officers they have yet to even get a briefing date set.

"If this project is pulled there will be a lot of very angry residents. This is a project that will trigger almost 1,000 acres, truly significant and certainly a legacy for future generations but officers are unable to give me any assurances.”

In response, Cllr Whelband said: “It is astonishing to see the former administration demanding instant assurances on a huge project which they themselves failed to properly brief us on when they were in office.

"We inherited this scheme only weeks ago, yet despite the scale of the proposal and the potentially significant cost to taxpayers, we are still awaiting a full and detailed briefing on exactly what is proposed, what liabilities the council could face, and what the long-term financial implications are.

"This is a huge project. Before vast sums of public money are committed, we make absolutely no apology for wanting to properly get to the bottom of what is going on.

"No decision has been made on the future of the scheme. However, unlike the previous administration, we will not blindly wave through major projects without first ensuring we fully understand the detail, the risks and the cost to residents.”

The Rewilding Harborough project aims to restore nature on 130 acres of land to the north of Market Harborough and Great Bowden and those in charge claim the project will be of ‘national significance’.

When it was announced in March 2025, Harborough District Council said its purchase has been “a catalyst for wider partner involvement which has already brought the total rewilding project to more than 500 acres”.

It has the support of Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust, who hope the project will restore a nature-depleted area, re-establishing natural processes and building a network of nature sites.