Classic Cottages team pulls invasive plants at Hayle’s Upton Towans

A patch of coastal dune in Hayle looks after some of Cornwall’s rarest butterflies and plants, and last week a team of holiday letting staff spent a day making sure it stays that way.

Employees from Cornwall-based Classic Cottages swapped their desks for the sand dunes at Upton Towans nature reserve, joining Cornwall Wildlife Trust for a volunteering day aimed at protecting one of the county’s most important coastal habitats.

Pulling out the pretty problem

The job for the day was clearing invasive red valerian from the dune system. It is a plant many people happily grow in their gardens, but out on the towans it spreads fast and crowds out the delicate native species that give the reserve its unusual ecology.

Regular volunteer days keep the valerian in check, which protects the wider sand dune habitat and gives Cornwall’s rarer wildlife and plants room to thrive.

Classic Cottages is one of the Trust’s Reserve Guardians, a programme through which businesses provide ongoing support to help care for its network of reserves.

Dominique Adams, Marketing and Communications Officer at Classic Cottages, said: “As a Hayle-based business, we’re proud to support Cornwall Wildlife Trust in protecting one of the area’s most special landscapes. Spending the day at Upton Towans gave our team a real appreciation of the work involved in caring for this remarkable habitat and the rare wildlife that depends on it. It was a rewarding day and we’re pleased to play a small part in helping look after it.”

📷A photo of a silver-studded blue butterfly taken at Upton Towans - Credit: Paul Richards

What lives on the towans

Upton Towans is home to the silver-studded blue butterfly, which takes its name from the tiny reflective blue scales beneath its wings. It also supports the internationally rare petalwort, a tiny liverwort often mistaken for moss, along with pyramidal orchids, skylarks, kestrels, stonechats and meadow pipits.

Britain’s coastal sand dunes matter well beyond Cornwall. They are internationally important for wildlife and also rank among Europe’s most threatened habitats.

Rowan Hartgroves, Corporate Partnerships Manager at Cornwall Wildlife Trust, said: “Support from businesses like Classic Cottages is vital to the work we do. Financial support through our Reserve Guardians programme helps us care for some of Cornwall’s most precious places, while volunteer days like this provide valuable hands-on help for our conservation teams.”

Rowan added: “Cornwall Wildlife Trust cares for more than 5,500 acres of land (around 2,300 hectares) and manages 59 nature reserves across the county. Looking after these special places is only possible thanks to the support of our members, volunteers and corporate partners, whose contribution helps us protect Cornwall’s wildlife for future generations.”

📷Rowan Hartgroves (front centre) from Cornwall Wildlife Trust with (left to right) Ed Manning, Louise Dale, Dominique Adams and Sandy Wyper from Classic Cottages - Credit: Paul Richards

The wider group

Classic Cottages is part of Sapphire Holidays, the Cornwall-based group of self-catering holiday letting agencies that also includes Aspects Holidays, Boutique Retreats, Unique Hideaways and Island Escapes.

Established in 1977, Classic Cottages is the UK’s largest independent holiday letting specialist, with a portfolio of properties exclusive to the company. Which? has named it a Recommended Provider for UK Holiday Cottages for six years running, and it won silver for Best UK Holiday Home Rentals at the 2025 British Travel Awards.

Cornwall Wildlife Trust has been working since 1962 to create a Cornwall where nature thrives. The county’s leading local wildlife conservation charity is backed by more than 17,000 members and 1,000 volunteers, and is one of 46 Wildlife Trusts across the UK that together form the Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts.

📷Rowan Hartgroves (front centre) from Cornwall Wildlife Trust with (left to right) Ed Manning, Louise Dale, Dominique Adams and Sandy Wyper from Classic Cottages - Credit: Paul Richards