A mosaic of ancient grassland and scrub lies here, with grazed pastures and areas of more formal parkland and amenity use.
Burn Close Pasture is one of the few areas of ancient semi-natural grassland left in North Tyneside and contains key plant species such as dyer's greenweed, common fleabane, smooth tare and pepper saxifrage.
Willington Gut Saltmarsh is recognised as a separate Site of Nature Conservation Importance (SNCI), as it is the only characteristic middle saltmarsh community left on the River Tyne.
It extends for approximately 0.5km inland along the Dene to the road at Church Bank. Typical species found here include sea milkwort, sea arrow grass and sea aster.
In addition, bee orchids grow on the open grassland below the war memorial at Rosehill. Here the orchid is at its extreme northern limit in the UK.
Good populations of invertebrates are associated with these grassland areas, including butterflies such as small tortoiseshell, meadow brown and common blue.
Other areas of the Dene, in particular the area around Holy Cross, contain dense scrub made up of hawthorn, blackthorn, elder and dog rose.
These areas provide food, cover and breeding sites for birds including song thrush, dunnock, linnet and blackbird. Several grazed pastures are located to the west of Holy Cross, divided up by hedgerows of the same species of scrub.
Access to the Dene on foot can be made at several points along its length, but the main entrance is found at the foot of Crow Bank, where there is space for a few cars to park.