Knighton Ward, Leicester

Selected parish / Wild Places / Public footpaths / Parish boundaries

To find out more about featured Wild Places in and around the parish (red boundaries on the map), visit the Wild Places page. Contact NatureSpot if you have an idea for any additional Wild Places.

Knighton Ward is in the south-east of the City of Leicester.  The population at the time of the 2021 census was 16,831.  The ward covers an area of 415 hectares (1.6 square miles).  Knighton Park is a significant area of green open space at the southern boundary of the ward, where it meets with Oadby and Wigston.  There is not a lot of public open space in the rest of the ward, but parts of the ward are characterised by large gardens with mature trees, which are gradually being diminished by backland development.  Leicester University manages the Attenborough Arboretum, which is a good place to view native and introduced trees and a variety of wildlife.  There is a small local nature reserve at the Wash Brook Nature Reserve on the edge of the ward next to the Midland Mainline.  Knighton Wild is also involved in the management of St Mary Magdalen Churchyard and Knighton Green.  Knighton Green is a small area of grass and woodland on the Wash Brook.

Parish Update

Get involved this year with Knighton Wild in meetings and practical activities.

Saving Saffron Brook

Knighton Wild as been a partner in the Saving Saffron Brook project, which has worked at improving the quality and diversity of the Wash Brook/Saffron Brook as it flows from out in Oadby, through Knighton and the Saffron Lane/Aylestone Road area to the Soar. This involved a range of activities, including water quality monitoring and environmental improvements, some of which the group is continuing after the end of the project.  More information is available on the Knighton Wild website.  If you are interested in getting involved, please email info@knightonwild.org.uk.

Members of Knighton Wild have posted information about the project on the Knighton Wild website.  Recent posts include:

Keep an eye on this page and the Knighton Wild website for details of events such as a Bioblitzes and meetings.

Record Wildlife in Your Garden

Spending your time at home?  Why not record the wildlife you see in your garden.  Have a look at the Knighton Wild website for updates from some of our members on what they've seen and identification suggestions and help.  You can record what you see on NatureSpot.  Why not register if you haven't already?

If you are interested and have ideas for future local activities then please contact us:

info@knightonwild.org.uk or http://knightonwild.org.uk/

2 Spot Ladybird

Only one of our native Ladybirds, the 2 Spot Ladybird, has been adversely affected by the arrival of the Harlequin Ladybird. More...

Total species seen in this parish:

Wild places
Parishes
Thanks

Thanks to NatureSpot, Leicester City Council and Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust for supporting the work of Knighton Wild in Knighton.

Verges for wildlife

Parish Councils are being invited by Leicestershire County Council to take over the management of selected road verges in their area in order to improve their value for wildlife. So far, over 50 verges have been adopted and all have been, or will be, surveyed by NatureSpot to find out which species are already growing there. Surveys by NatureSpot have revealed a surprising diversity of flora with an average of over 30 species on each verge. Encourage your parish council to take part! More information about the project can be found here.

Welcome to Knighton

Welcome to the Knighton Ward page in NatureSpot. Knighton Wild is the local wildlife group in Knighton and exists to encourage people to enjoy and record our local wildlife and improve the local environment for wildlife. News in this section. Upcoming events in the Parish Update section below.

Knighton Green Open Morning - August 2023

Knighton Wild will be holding an open morning at Knighton Green on Saturday 19th August from 11.00am to 2.00pm.  The event is open to everyone and will show some of the work that Knighton Wild has been involved in in the area as well as including a range of activities for all the family.  These include:

It's Your Neighbourhood Assessment 2023

The 2023 assessment for the It's Your Neighbourhood scheme run by the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) took place on 31st July, when the assessor met with members of Knighton Wild to look at St Mary's Churchyard, Knighton Green and the triangle at the end of Knighton Church Road on Carisbrooke Road.  All of these are now being partly managed by volunteers.  You can read more about the work that has been done and the assessment on Knighton Wild's website.  The results will be announced

Saving Saffron Brook

A consortium of local organisations, led by Leicester City Council, has obtained about £900,000 in funding for a project over 18 months to Save the Saffron Brook.

The brook flows from Oadby, through Knighton, Knighton Fields and the Saffron Lane and Aylestone Road areas to join the Soar near the British Gas works on Aylestone Road.

 

The images and records below are all from the parish/ward and have been submitted by members of the public.

Latest images

The latest images and records displayed below include those awaiting verification checks so we cannot guarantee that every identification is correct. Once accepted, the record displays a green tick.

In the Latest Records section, click on the header to sort A-Z, and again to sort Z-A. Use the header boxes to filter the list.

Latest records

Species group Total no. of species Total no. of records
Total17068659
Moths3331418
Wildflowers207762
Bugs149600
Beetles112415
Fungi109239
Spiders105382
Trees, Shrubs & Climbers85240
Bees, Wasps, Ants64751
Birds611127
Flies55151
Hoverflies42413
Slugs & Snails41211
Mosses & Liverworts40101
Craneflies, Gnats & Midges3352
Springtails & Bristletails32120
Grasses, Rushes & Sedges3072
Mites, Ticks & Pseudoscorpions2569
Butterflies23640
Caddisflies23120
Sawflies2158
Mammals12161
Centipedes & Millipedes1022
Dragonflies and Damselflies10209
Woodlice, Crustaceans959
harvestman (Opiliones)929
Lichens921
Barklice & Booklice612
Grasshoppers & Crickets637
Worms68
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