Ivel Springs is a 15.4 hectare Local Nature Reserve on the urban fringe of Baldock in Hertfordshire. It is owned and managed by North Hertfordshire District Council, assisted by the Friends of Baldock Green Spaces.
History The site, which was a rubbish dump until the 1950s, was declared a Local Nature Reserve by Hertfordshire County Council in 2007. It has habitats of woodland, wetland and pasture with a wide variety of wildlife. Its springs are the source of the River Ivel. The grazing area of the wildflower meadow is the site of a farming settlement that has Scheduled Monument status. In 2025, the reserve was awarded Green Flag status for the eleventh consecutive year.
River Ivel restoration Affinity Water, which extracts groundwater in the area, carried out restoration work to the Ivel riverbed and banks, and constructed a seasonal wetland at the reserve in 2023–24.
Access There is vehicle access to the site from the A507 (North Road), and pedestrian access from Norton Road and Icknield Way (via a tunnel under the railway embankment).
References
External links Plan of the reserve in 2008 Affinity Water's Ivel Springs River Restoration Project - November 2023 and April 2025 comparison photographs