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About Dean House
The garden at Dean House extends into a field of approximately 5 acres of former farmland. In May 2021, a breeding colony of Great Crested Newts was discovered in the small garden pond. To encourage further biodiversity on the site, in 2021 a project plan was devised with The Romney Marsh Countryside Partnership. Two large natural ponds have been excavated with funding from Natural England and, with the help of a MOREwoods grant from the Woodland Trust, native trees and shrubs have been planted. This builds on existing dense hedgerow on the site which attracts nesting birds.
There is a small population of the red-listed tree sparrow on Romney Marsh. Since 2023 nest boxes have been installed and maintained on the site by members of the East Kent Wildlife Group in the hope of attracting breeding pairs. In 2024, 21 tree sparrows successfully fledged thanks to the boxes together with 22 blue tits and 13 great tits. The site provides good habitat for several red-listed birds including skylarks, house sparrows, starlings, greenfinches and yellowhammer.
The Bumblebee Conservation Trust has also been of considerable assistance in helping to create wildflower areas thereby providing further food sources for bees and other pollinators. The seeding of the pond spoils and pond edges has resulted in a wide variety of native flowers. This, together with the garden planting, attracts a number of different bumblebee species including one of the rarer species – the Ruderal bumblebee. In 2024, the UK’s rarest bumblebee, the Shrill Carder, was recorded on the site. This was the first sighting in South Kent for 12 years.
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