High Weald AONB
Encyclopedia
The High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty is situated in south-east England
. Covering an area of 1450 square kilometres (559.8 sq mi), it extends across the counties of Surrey
, West Sussex
, East Sussex
and Kent
. It is the fourth largest Area of Outstanding Beauty (AONB) in England and Wales. It is characterised by an attractive, small-scale landscape containing a mosaic of small farms and woodlands, historic parks, sunken lanes and ridge-top villages.
). AONBs do not possess separate administrative structures like Britain's National Parks, but rely on existing structures. In the case of the High Weald, this requires co-ordination of the policies and management activities of fifteen local authorities, comprising four counties (Surrey, West Sussex, East Sussex and Kent) and eleven district authorities.
anticline. At its margins are the relatively flat clay vales of the Low Weald, the Greensand Ridge
, the North Downs
and South Downs
. At the centre, the sandstones and clays formed geologically of the Hastings Beds
of the early Cretaceous
era rise up to give the characteristic forested ridges of the High Weald. This geology and the subsequent dissection of the sandstone core by rivers such as the Ouse, Medway and Rother are fundamental to its underlying landscape character. The headwaters of these rivers have cut deep, steep-sided valleys (ghylls) which are wet and clayey. On this underlying geological structure centuries if not millennia of human activity have created the landscape that is visible today.
At the time of the Domesday Book
, 1086, the High Weald was the most wooded natural area in England. Today, 24.6% of the AONB is woodland, compared with a national average of about 9%. Of this, 17.6% is ancient woodland
; in other words, over half the area's woodlands are ancient. The area of the High Weald AONB represents only 1% of England yet it has 3.4% of England's woodlands, making it one of the most densely wooded landscapes.
All this gives the High Weald a wooded appearance when viewed from a distance from a hilltop, but on closer inspection a close patchwork of small fields, hedges and woods connected by sunken lanes created by centuries of transhumance which patterns the rolling wooded ridges and valleys becomes apparent.
The unique Wealden landscape of small fields and scattered farmsteads was created by pioneer farmers of the late medieval period. The early settlements in this period were formed on the better warm soils, the drier ridge tops and the river valleys, the latter two being the main lines of communication.
The wooded relief and comparative inaccessibility historically provided the High Weald with a sense of enclosure and remoteness that can still be appreciated today, and which contrasts strongly with the more open nature of the surrounding Low Weald and the generally populous and urbanised nature of south-east England as a whole.
The highest sandstone hills of the High Weald are referred to as the Weald Forest Ridge. This ridge includes a number of ancient heathland forests, notably Ashdown Forest
, St Leonards Forest, Worth Forest and Dallington Forest
. Ancient woodland covers 22% of the Weald Forest Ridge (total woodland cover is 40%), which represents a significant proportion of the resource in the UK.
, lie within the AONB but are excluded from it. Battle
, with more than 6,000 inhabitants, is the largest settlement actually in the AONB. The High Weald AONB is closely bordered by several major population centres, notably Crawley, Horsham, East Grinstead, Tonbridge, Hastings, Uckfield and Haywards Heath. These major towns, taken together with Tunbridge Wells, Crowborough and Battle, account for almost 400,000 people, which inevitably imposes pressures on the AONB but also underlines its important as an important, historic and relatively unspoilt open space in a relatively populous and affluent region lying in the hinterland of London
.
Today, agriculture, mainly livestock farming, remains the main AONB land use, but in 2007 it only accounted for 67.5% of the total area, an increase of 6% from 2000; by 2010 agriculture may account for less than half the area.
Employment in the traditional rural industries of the High Weald, agriculture, forestry and mineral working (gypsum, notably, is mined from the Purbeck Beds near Battle
), declined rapidly during the late 20th century to a point where less than 10% of employees are now engaged in these activities. In the case of agriculture, only around 4,500 people are now employed out of a total estimated population of 124,880. Despite this, agriculture remains an important employer, along with tourism and leisure. There are few large firms in the private sector, and most firms are very small.
Significant wealth has been brought into the High Weald over the centuries by those from outside wishing to live there. The trend for prosperous urban dwellers to move to the countryside is apparent as early as the 14th century. Kent was the most popular destination due in part to its accessibility to London and its particular form of land tenure which enabled land to be freely negotiable. The process of migration accelerated in the 19th century with the advent of the railways, which made access from London much easier. The resources brought into the area by wealthy incomers created and maintained the many parks and gardens that are now characteristic of the High Weald landscape.
Today the High Weald is still economically dependent, not so much on wealthy landowners but on large numbers of commuters living there who travel outside the area to work, mainly to the Crawley/Gatwick conurbation, the coastal towns and London. Today 70% of residents commute to work outside the area while less than 7% make their living directly from the land.
Bewl Water
, one of five reservoirs in the AONB, is the largest body of inland water in south-east England and one of the area's most important tourist and recreational destinations.
Bedgebury Forest
, a large area of ancient woodland and heath covering some 10.5 square kilometres (2,594.6 acre), has facilities for mountain biking, horse-riding and other recreational activities, while Bedgebury National Pinetum, which the forest surrounds, is said to be the most complete collection of conifers on one site anywhere in the world, and a major tourist attraction.
Ashdown Forest
is an internationally important area of lowland heathland occupying the highest sandstone ridge-top of the High Weald. It was also the setting for the Winnie-the-Pooh
stories of AA Milne. Accounting for two-thirds (65.5%) of the AONB's heathland, it receives special protection as a UK Site of Special Scientific Interest
, as a European Union Special Protection Area
for birds and European Union Special Area of Conservation
for its heathland habitats, and by its membership of Natura 2000
, which brings together Europe's most important and threatened wildlife areas. Ashdown Forest's commons are open to the public.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Covering an area of 1450 square kilometres (559.8 sq mi), it extends across the counties of Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
, West Sussex
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex , Hampshire and Surrey. The county of Sussex has been divided into East and West since the 12th century, and obtained separate county councils in 1888, but it remained a single ceremonial county until 1974 and the coming...
, East Sussex
East Sussex
East Sussex is a county in South East England. It is bordered by the counties of Kent, Surrey and West Sussex, and to the south by the English Channel.-History:...
and Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
. It is the fourth largest Area of Outstanding Beauty (AONB) in England and Wales. It is characterised by an attractive, small-scale landscape containing a mosaic of small farms and woodlands, historic parks, sunken lanes and ridge-top villages.
Designation and administration
The High Weald AONB was designated under the National Park and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 in October 1983. Designation as an AONB gave official recognition to the unique landscape of the High Weald, strengthened the ability of government agencies and local authorities to conserve and enhance the landscape, and provided priority for financial support for these objectives from the principal government agency responsible for AONBs, the Countryside Agency (now Natural EnglandNatural England
Natural England is the non-departmental public body of the UK government responsible for ensuring that England's natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna, freshwater and marine environments, geology and soils, are protected and improved...
). AONBs do not possess separate administrative structures like Britain's National Parks, but rely on existing structures. In the case of the High Weald, this requires co-ordination of the policies and management activities of fifteen local authorities, comprising four counties (Surrey, West Sussex, East Sussex and Kent) and eleven district authorities.
Geology
The High Weald lies at the core of the distinctive WealdWeald
The Weald is the name given to an area in South East England situated between the parallel chalk escarpments of the North and the South Downs. It should be regarded as three separate parts: the sandstone "High Weald" in the centre; the clay "Low Weald" periphery; and the Greensand Ridge which...
anticline. At its margins are the relatively flat clay vales of the Low Weald, the Greensand Ridge
Greensand Ridge
The Greensand Ridge is an extensive, prominent, often heavily wooded, sandstone escarpment and range of hills in south-east England. It runs in a horseshoe shape around the Weald of Surrey, Sussex and Kent. It reaches its highest elevation, , at Leith Hill in Surrey—the second highest point...
, the North Downs
North Downs
The North Downs are a ridge of chalk hills in south east England that stretch from Farnham in Surrey to the White Cliffs of Dover in Kent. The North Downs lie within two Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty , the Surrey Hills and the Kent Downs...
and South Downs
South Downs
The South Downs is a range of chalk hills that extends for about across the south-eastern coastal counties of England from the Itchen Valley of Hampshire in the west to Beachy Head, near Eastbourne, East Sussex, in the east. It is bounded on its northern side by a steep escarpment, from whose...
. At the centre, the sandstones and clays formed geologically of the Hastings Beds
Hastings Beds
The Hastings Beds is a geological formation in southeast England whose strata date back to the Early Cretaceous. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation.-Ornithischians:-Saurischians:-References:...
of the early Cretaceous
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
era rise up to give the characteristic forested ridges of the High Weald. This geology and the subsequent dissection of the sandstone core by rivers such as the Ouse, Medway and Rother are fundamental to its underlying landscape character. The headwaters of these rivers have cut deep, steep-sided valleys (ghylls) which are wet and clayey. On this underlying geological structure centuries if not millennia of human activity have created the landscape that is visible today.
Landscape
The entire Weald was once heavily wooded and, even though the vast woodland that lay between the North Downs and South Downs, which was known to the Celtic Britons as Coit Andred, to the Romans as Silva Anderida, and to the Saxons first as Andredesleage and later Andredesweald, has been much reduced and fragmented as the result of human activity over the last 1,500 years, woodland remains at a much higher density in the High Weald than elsewhere.At the time of the Domesday Book
Domesday Book
Domesday Book , now held at The National Archives, Kew, Richmond upon Thames in South West London, is the record of the great survey of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086...
, 1086, the High Weald was the most wooded natural area in England. Today, 24.6% of the AONB is woodland, compared with a national average of about 9%. Of this, 17.6% is ancient woodland
Ancient woodland
Ancient woodland is a term used in the United Kingdom to refer specifically to woodland that has existed continuously since 1600 or before in England and Wales . Before those dates, planting of new woodland was uncommon, so a wood present in 1600 was likely to have developed naturally...
; in other words, over half the area's woodlands are ancient. The area of the High Weald AONB represents only 1% of England yet it has 3.4% of England's woodlands, making it one of the most densely wooded landscapes.
All this gives the High Weald a wooded appearance when viewed from a distance from a hilltop, but on closer inspection a close patchwork of small fields, hedges and woods connected by sunken lanes created by centuries of transhumance which patterns the rolling wooded ridges and valleys becomes apparent.
The unique Wealden landscape of small fields and scattered farmsteads was created by pioneer farmers of the late medieval period. The early settlements in this period were formed on the better warm soils, the drier ridge tops and the river valleys, the latter two being the main lines of communication.
The wooded relief and comparative inaccessibility historically provided the High Weald with a sense of enclosure and remoteness that can still be appreciated today, and which contrasts strongly with the more open nature of the surrounding Low Weald and the generally populous and urbanised nature of south-east England as a whole.
The highest sandstone hills of the High Weald are referred to as the Weald Forest Ridge. This ridge includes a number of ancient heathland forests, notably Ashdown Forest
Ashdown Forest
Ashdown Forest is an ancient area of tranquil open heathland occupying the highest sandy ridge-top of the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It is situated some south of London in the county of East Sussex, England...
, St Leonards Forest, Worth Forest and Dallington Forest
Dallington Forest
Dallington Forest is a 16.2 hectare biological Site of Special Scientific Interest, located in East Sussex, England. The site was notified in 1985 under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, and is currently an area of ancient woodland....
. Ancient woodland covers 22% of the Weald Forest Ridge (total woodland cover is 40%), which represents a significant proportion of the resource in the UK.
Population and settlements
With an estimated population of around 124,880 and a density of 0.85 people per hectare, the High Weald AONB is an essentially rural area characterised by a landscape of scattered villages and dispersed settlement. Two major towns, Tunbridge Wells and CrowboroughCrowborough
The highest point in the town is 242 metres above sea level. This summit is the highest point of the High Weald and second highest point in East Sussex . Its relative height is 159 m, meaning Crowborough qualifies as one of England's Marilyns...
, lie within the AONB but are excluded from it. Battle
Battle, East Sussex
Battle is a small town and civil parish in the local government district of Rother in East Sussex, England. It lies south southeast of London, east of Brighton and east of the county town of Lewes...
, with more than 6,000 inhabitants, is the largest settlement actually in the AONB. The High Weald AONB is closely bordered by several major population centres, notably Crawley, Horsham, East Grinstead, Tonbridge, Hastings, Uckfield and Haywards Heath. These major towns, taken together with Tunbridge Wells, Crowborough and Battle, account for almost 400,000 people, which inevitably imposes pressures on the AONB but also underlines its important as an important, historic and relatively unspoilt open space in a relatively populous and affluent region lying in the hinterland of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Economy
Farming was always a marginal activity in the High Weald. This, combined with the area's relative inaccessibility, made it historically one of the least prosperous areas of south-east England. However, the rapid growth of the iron industry from about 1490, together with the development of crafts such as weaving and tanning, made it, for a time, one of the wealthiest districts of England. By the 18th and 19th centuries these activities had moved to more favourable areas, leaving farming as the mainstay of the rural economy, though the majority of farms were and remain small and seldom very profitable.Today, agriculture, mainly livestock farming, remains the main AONB land use, but in 2007 it only accounted for 67.5% of the total area, an increase of 6% from 2000; by 2010 agriculture may account for less than half the area.
Employment in the traditional rural industries of the High Weald, agriculture, forestry and mineral working (gypsum, notably, is mined from the Purbeck Beds near Battle
Battle, East Sussex
Battle is a small town and civil parish in the local government district of Rother in East Sussex, England. It lies south southeast of London, east of Brighton and east of the county town of Lewes...
), declined rapidly during the late 20th century to a point where less than 10% of employees are now engaged in these activities. In the case of agriculture, only around 4,500 people are now employed out of a total estimated population of 124,880. Despite this, agriculture remains an important employer, along with tourism and leisure. There are few large firms in the private sector, and most firms are very small.
Significant wealth has been brought into the High Weald over the centuries by those from outside wishing to live there. The trend for prosperous urban dwellers to move to the countryside is apparent as early as the 14th century. Kent was the most popular destination due in part to its accessibility to London and its particular form of land tenure which enabled land to be freely negotiable. The process of migration accelerated in the 19th century with the advent of the railways, which made access from London much easier. The resources brought into the area by wealthy incomers created and maintained the many parks and gardens that are now characteristic of the High Weald landscape.
Today the High Weald is still economically dependent, not so much on wealthy landowners but on large numbers of commuters living there who travel outside the area to work, mainly to the Crawley/Gatwick conurbation, the coastal towns and London. Today 70% of residents commute to work outside the area while less than 7% make their living directly from the land.
Recreation
Several long distance paths cross the AONB: High Weald Landscape Trail, Weald Way, 1066 Country Walk, Saxon Shore Way, Vanguard Way and Sussex Border Path. The total length of footpaths is 2063 kilometres.Bewl Water
Bewl Water
Bewl Water is a reservoir in the valley of the River Bewl , straddling the boundary between Kent and East Sussex. It is about 4 km south of Lamberhurst, Kent, England...
, one of five reservoirs in the AONB, is the largest body of inland water in south-east England and one of the area's most important tourist and recreational destinations.
Bedgebury Forest
Bedgebury Forest
Bedgebury Forest is a forest surrounding Bedgebury National Pinetum, near Flimwell in Kent. In contrast to the National Pinetum, which contains exclusively coniferous trees, the forest contains both deciduous and coniferous species. It forms part of the High Weald Area Of Outstanding Natural...
, a large area of ancient woodland and heath covering some 10.5 square kilometres (2,594.6 acre), has facilities for mountain biking, horse-riding and other recreational activities, while Bedgebury National Pinetum, which the forest surrounds, is said to be the most complete collection of conifers on one site anywhere in the world, and a major tourist attraction.
Ashdown Forest
Ashdown Forest
Ashdown Forest is an ancient area of tranquil open heathland occupying the highest sandy ridge-top of the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It is situated some south of London in the county of East Sussex, England...
is an internationally important area of lowland heathland occupying the highest sandstone ridge-top of the High Weald. It was also the setting for the Winnie-the-Pooh
Winnie-the-Pooh
Winnie-the-Pooh, also called Pooh Bear, is a fictional anthropomorphic bear created by A. A. Milne. The first collection of stories about the character was the book Winnie-the-Pooh , and this was followed by The House at Pooh Corner...
stories of AA Milne. Accounting for two-thirds (65.5%) of the AONB's heathland, it receives special protection as a UK Site of Special Scientific Interest
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based upon...
, as a European Union Special Protection Area
Special Protection Area
A Special Protection Area or SPA is a designation under the European Union Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds.Under the Directive, Member States of the European Union have a duty to safeguard the habitats of migratory birds and certain particularly threatened birds.Together with Special...
for birds and European Union Special Area of Conservation
Special Area of Conservation
A Special Area of Conservation is defined in the European Union's Habitats Directive , also known as the Directive on the Conservation of Natural Habitats and of Wild Fauna and Flora...
for its heathland habitats, and by its membership of Natura 2000
Natura 2000
Natura 2000 is an ecological network of protected areas in the territory of the European Union.-Origins:In May 1992, the governments of the European Communities adopted legislation designed to protect the most seriously threatened habitats and species across Europe. This legislation is called the...
, which brings together Europe's most important and threatened wildlife areas. Ashdown Forest's commons are open to the public.