Hedging for wildlife - advice please

The south side of my plot had an approx 30ft high blackthorn hedge along it, which is about 12ft deep. It hadn't been trimmed in years. Given 75% of my plot is then in shade and this year there are no nests or sloes, I have been allowed to take it down to 6ft high. This showed that a lot of it was dead, there's a hell of a lot of ivy across the floor and that there is a corridor about 4-5ft wide that nothing is growing in.

I want to volunteer to look after this bit, so that the hedging is managed at the 6-8ft level and encouraged to be bushy, and perhaps so that I can put other varieties in other than blackthorn.

Other than thinking of hazel and perhaps a (dwarf) buddleia for our resident hives, what else could I be thinking of to encourage wildlife? The hedge area is about 30-35ft long, is a run for local cats and foxes currently and we're on damp clay.

Thanks for any pointers!

I might, but I need to get permission from the Committee to look after it first, so I thought I'd ask for some ideas from you all, as you are bound to know more than me!

Costs plus complicated child access arrangements mean courses aren't often an option for me.

Cherry plum makes a great hedge addition -- plenty of flowers for the bees, plenty of small fruits for you too

Spindle is beautiful with its multicoloured berries at this time in the year, although not edible.

Beech is a good windbreak and as the advantage of keeping it's lovely leaves through the winter too. Hazel (as you said) makes a decent hedge and something evergreen added in as well helps early nesting birds, and provides some winter shelter too. Privet does the job in our garden

hazels etc as advised But You do not want to cut this hedge down to 4-5 ft best bet is either to lay it one side at a time or cut to within 6ins of the ground then once that has regrown to 5ft do the other side this will make a impenitrable barrier

Stick to native hedging as it will be right. Don't get sidetracked into fancy stuff that has no relevance 

I have an allotment hedge and it has a lot of privet, which I'm not keen on, but it does flower and attract insects and it provides good nesting for all manner of birds.  In my hedge there is also elder which is amazing, hawthorn, damson and bramble.  I use the prunings to help get the bonfire going (privet and the neighbours leylandii prunings make great fire starters) The elder makes good logs once it's dried. The hawthorn and damson provide good bean supports
As well as a privacy screen and noise baffle it's also pretty to look at. It's always, always got lots of wild life in it, usually greenfinch, pigeons, blackbirds, robins, wrens, a hunting sparrowhawk regularly dives into it hunting for blackbirds. Underneath the hedge provides cover for pheasants and partridges and rabbits.  I keep it quite high but every three years or so really give it a good going over but I don't like it too low as it allows the deer to get in 

I built myself a little pond and the greenfinches love it