Every pound spent on maintaining green spaces contributes £30 towards health and wellbeing benefits, a new study has revealed.

The research, conducted by the Land Trust, found that every pound invested in parks and nature reserves also contributes £23 towards community safety.

Of those surveyed, nine out of ten people visiting Land Trust’s spaces felt that they play a positive part in their happiness and wellbeing. Visitors to these spaces also have higher levels of wellbeing and lower levels of anxiety compared to the national averages.

Euan Hall, CEO of the Land Trust said: ‘We have always known that well managed green spaces provide significant benefits for society, but the results of this study are really encouraging and they reinforce the importance of our work in sustainably managing our green spaces.

‘Seeing the survey results quantified so starkly in this context is fantastic. This is a major step forward for us and reaffirms the opportunities we have for providing even more benefits to society.’