A VILLAGE meadow will have its tranquil features preserved thanks to efforts to turn it into a nature reserve.

Rectory Meadow close to Ash Road in Hartley, near Gravesend, is almost five acres of chalk grassland and adjoining woodland.

The tranquil public open space was obtained by Hartley Parish Council in 1997.

The council has said the area of land, which is used frequently by villagers, has come under threat in the past from residential development.

It now hopes to secure the land by designating it a Local Nature Reserve.

A parish council spokesman said: “In recent years the meadow had come under threat from residential development and in order to secure its future for the continued benefit and enjoyment of residents the parish council acquired the site in 1997 from a company of house builders.”

Areas of unimproved chalk grassland with associated plants growing in thin calcareous soil over chalk bedrock is quite rare.

The parish council hopes that with English Nature’s support the land can become a small nature reserve, giving it an additional level of protection to ensure natural features are preserved.

The parish council takes huge pride in the upkeep of the area, for example working alongside the North West Kent Countryside Project to organise a grass cutting regime which encourages flora and fauna to grow and prevents the meadow from being overgrown with scrub.

The meadow was designated a site of nature conservation in 1984 by the organisation now known as the Kent Wildlife Trust.

Certified copies of the declaration which will designate the site as a nature reserve are available for public inspection. They are available at the parish council offices, Hartley library, Ash Road, Hartley. They can be viewed from 9am to 1pm and 2pm to 5pm.