White storks to return to London after centuries

White storks are set to be reintroduced to London for the first time in centuries, after plans were approved by council leaders in Dagenham.

Eastbrookend Country Park will become home to the borough's newest residents, whilst The Chase nature reserve will welcome a new colony of beavers.

Beavers and white storks were once native to Britain but were both hunted to eradication in the 15th and 16th centuries.

Barking and Dagenham Council deputy leader Saima Ashraf said their arrival in the borough would be a "bold and historic moment".

She said: "This is a once-in-a-generation chance to witness nature's comeback into your own backyard."

The council has teamed up with London Wildlife Trust to handle their reintroduction, and said the two green spaces were "exceptional sites" that could support the species' return.

The two bodies have secured funding from City Hall, the government and corporate sponsors to pay for the joint project.

A purpose-built aviary with grassland areas at Eastbrookend Country Park will house the reintroduced white storks.

The resulting chicks born there will eventually be released to help establish a new breeding population in the area.

The beavers will be released into a lakeside enclosure with 16 acres of open water and several small islands at The Chase in March 2027.

It follows the successful reintroduction of beavers in an enclosure in Paradise Fields in Greenford, west London, in October 2023.

Labour councillor Ashraf said the funding would also pay for a new species recovery officer who could run nature walks, school visits and a voluntary programme.

She said the project would come at "no cost to the local taxpayer", according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Ashraf told the cabinet: "I'm so excited because we'll be able to watch wild beavers building dams through your local park. You will be able to see white storks raising chicks.

"You will have free guided walks and workshops, amazing educational opportunities for our schools and everybody else and also a wilder, greener park buzzing with life."

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