Sites at Clockfields in Brierley Hill, Uffmoor in Halesowen and land off Pedmore Lane, Stourbridge, will be considered special nature and conservation areas under new plans.

It comes as a number of sites in the borough remain under threat having been included in the Black Country Plan, which has earmarked thousands of homes for green belt land.

The new plans will see Clockfields, considered a key conservation area, given Sites of Local Importance for Nature Conservation (SLINC) status.

The area of wood and grassland, which runs next to Stourbridge Canal, has long been eyed up by developers, and recently saw a new homes scheme thrown out by Dudley Council's planning committee.

Meanwhile, Tack Farm at Uffmoor in Halesowen, which is already designated a SLINC, could see its Stour Valley section upgraded to a Site of Importance for Nature Conservation (SINC) – giving it greater protection.

The site's hedgerows are under consideration for SLINC status.

Parts of a site at Pedmore Lane, Stourbridge, already have SLINC status, but under the new plans sections of currently undesignated hedgerows, scrub and woodland will be included.

Ecological surveys have been carried out on the sites to assess their suitability for the protected status, which will be decided at a cabinet meeting on Thursday.

Councillor Simon Phipps, cabinet member for regeneration and enterprise, said: "We have lots of green spaces which need to be protected at all costs.

"They not only offer important conservation and ecological sites of significance for wildlife they provide great places for people to spend time in.

"There have been in-depth studies done at all of these sites which have highlighted their importance and we will be looking at giving them extra protection through planning policy to preserve them for many years to come."