National Trust properties at risk from extreme weather

Storms and flooding have damaged some of the UK’s most precious heritage, according to the National Trust – the UK’s biggest conservation charity.

It says extreme weather is taking a toll on the estates it manages in England and Wales, with many mature trees brought down and flooding damaging buildings and gardens.

Warm, wet conditions have prevailed this year and that has brought problems too, the Trust says in its annual roundup of how the weather and climate has affected its vast holdings of land and property.

It says increasing “homogenisation” is blurring distinctions between the seasons, which can be challenging for many insect species and the predators that depend on them.