Background The River Avon develops into a large calcareous lowland river south of Salisbury. The floodplain consists of humid, species-rich grassland, with ditches and some standing water usually persisting through the spring months. The traditional farming pattern of the valley reflects the propensity for winter flooding. In 1982, the Avon Valley constituted one of the top eight lowland wet grassland sites in England for breeding waders. It has historically supported nationally important populations of breeding northern lapwing (Vanellus vanellus), redshank (Tringa totanus) and common snipe (Gallinago gallinago). However, numbers of breeding waders in the Avon Valley have decreased dramatically, with declines of 64% in lapwing, 75% in redshank and 97% in snipe recorded from 1982 to 2002. This is mainly due to the agricultural improvement of wet grassland habitats involving drainage, fertilisation of grass swards, increased livestock densities, and high rates of nest predation. Monitoring of lapwing breeding success over recent years has shown that it is currently too low for the maintenance of a stable breeding population. Objectives The LIFE WADERS FOR REAL project seeks to reverse the decline of breeding waders in the river floodplain of the Avon Valley, part of which is designated as a Natura 2000 network site. To halt the decline of lapwing and redshank, in particular, urgent intervention is needed to improve breeding success. The objective of the project is to increase the breeding density of key bird species through a unique combination of habitat restoration in collaboration with farmers, and innovative actions that target seasonal exclusion, monitoring and tracking of predators. Expected results: The drawing up and implementation of conservation plans for four ‘hotspot’ sites in the Avon Valley, involving around 1 000 m of new boundary ditches, 1 000 m of in-field wet-feature restoration, 1 000 m of anti-predator fencing, 500 m of electric fencing and 5-6 excluder cages; Increased lapwing breeding success above the level required for maintenance of a stable population (average of 0.7 chick fledged per pair per annum) at four ‘hotspot’ sites, each measuring at least 100 ha; Halted and partially reversed decline of lapwings from about 60 pairs to 80-90 pairs; Increased numbers of breeding redshank pairs, by 50% at the four ‘hotspot’ sites; Increased area of habitat suitable for nesting redshank by 20 ha, and ideally to increase the number of breeding pairs in the valley as a whole from 22 pairs to nearer 30 pairs; Creation of at least 20 ha of optimal habitat for breeding snipe, and an assessment for wider application of whether this is successful in enticing birds breeding in the New Forest (around 10 km away) to nest in the Avon Valley; Measured effectiveness and evaluated costs of various techniques for reducing predation on waders; Data collected on changes in wet meadow flora, invertebrates and wintering waterfowl, resulting from management for breeding waders; At least 30 farmers engaged in the project area, educating them on how to achieve wader management alongside farm operations through one-to-one discussions and literature written in lay terminology; and The trial, monitoring, evaluation, adaptation and implementation of the ‘Planning for Real’ approach for the sustainable delivery of conservation actions.