WILDFLOWER areas are set to be expanded across the borough, in order to provide wildlife habitats for pollinating insects.

The Wokingham Borough Council is planning on creating new wildflower meadows across the borough, which link towns to countrysides in order to allow pollinating bugs to travel safely.

They said 16,500 square metres of wildflower meadows, referred to as b-lines, were created and maintained in areas such as Woodley, Earley and Lower Earley last year.

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Cllr Parry Batth, executive member for environment, said: "Pollinating insects are the lifeblood of our environment so anything we can do to support them as part of this project is fantastic.

"We’re already carrying out work to maximise the opportunities for wildflowers across the borough and it’s great we can link these up to be part of Buglife’s plans for the whole country.

"We look forward to working with them to support their vital work, which is being supported by Government funding."

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Current b-line sites are in sites such as Ashenbury Park, Woodley, Winnersh Meadows, and Riverside Park, Earley, as well as other sites across the borough.

Sam Cartwright, senior biodiversity and planning officer from Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust, said: "Insect abundance has plummeted in recent years and a step-change is needed in how we target our collective efforts to restore their numbers.

"This network of B-Lines will help to prioritise local action for pollinating insects in the places where it will be most beneficial.

"Crucially, these B-Lines will also contribute to Berkshire’s wider nature recovery network."