York Environment Centre

The York Environment Centre is managed by the Friends of St Nicholas Fields. We exist to promote sustainable living to people in York and the surrounding area. In 1994 we began work to transform this former landfill site into a Local Nature Reserve and the Environment Centre, which was completed in 2000.

From this base, we provide inspiration, advice, practical examples and services to enable people in York and beyond to move towards a sustainable future. Our three core activities are:

1. Continuing to improve St Nicholas Fields as a Local
Nature Reserve, enriching its biodiversity and habitats 
and enhancing its educational and recreational value 
for the local and wider York community. 

2. Developing the Environment Centre at St Nicholas Fields
as a source of information, advice and inspiration with
practical examples of sustainable design and ways of 
living.

3. Developing projects and services such as recycling and 
composting schemes, which help to create sustainable
communities. 

The Centre itself was designed to exemplify energy conservation and energy production from renewable sources. In addition to a 2.5Kw windturbine and photo-voltaic panels, we have a large area of triple-glazed, south facing windows which enable the building to be heated using passive solar energy. Our hot water comes from solar water heating panels and additional room heating comes from a wood burning stove. 

We provide most of our water needs by collecting and filtering rainwater and manage all of our human waste on site using composting toilets. One of the most innovative features of the Centre is our “living roof” which is a covering of low growing Sedum acre. This succulent plant provides extra insulation and changes colour throughout the year from red when it’s dry, to green when wet and yellow during the summer when it flowers!

Around the Centre is the 24 acre Local Nature Reserve providing a wide range of habitats to enjoy including woodland, meadow, rough grassland, a pond and streams. We also have a childrens play and picnic area. The nature reserve can be accessed free of charge all year round while the Centre is normally open Monday-Friday 9am - 5pm and Saturday 10am - 2pm. 

We offer a range of environmental education workshops and courses to a variety of different groups such as schools, local community groups and university students. We also run a community kerbside collection scheme using our electric vehicle which is powered sustainably and are involved in other community projects such as the local “York Rotters” composting scheme. The Centre can be booked for meetings and events, please contact us for more information.