Savernake Forest and Marlborough are almost synonymous. Both are ancient with long and rich histories and each dating back for well over 1,000 years.
Forestry England, who lease and manage the forest from the landowner and have done for more than eighty years is looking forward, to the next one hundred years and has embarked on a process from which a detailed forest plan will emerge that will cover initially the next decade.
This will involve the input from the local community. Forestry England are inviting those who live nearby and use the forest, Wiltshire residents and visitors to comment on its proposals for the sustainable management of Savernake Forest. Under a banner of ‘Our Shared Forest’, Forestry England is collaborating with local communities and expert stakeholders to develop an agreed, understood, and supported vision for the future of the Forest.
Ben Robinson, Forestry England planning and environment manager, explained: “The world, our climate, and our society are changing. They always have. But the pace of change is speeding up, and the impacts on our Forest over the next generation of trees and people will be profound. Together, we have the opportunity to think about what we want the Forest to look like and feel like in 100 years’ time.
“Our Shared Forest is a project to reshape and redirect Forestry England’s sustainable management of Savernake Forest. At this stage, we are finalising our shared long-term vision for the forest. The next step will be to create the detailed forest plan that will direct our operational management activities over the next 10 years. This will also be made available for comment in due course because, when we share a unified vision for this special place, we can ensure that our management will fully consider the complexity of the forest and its benefits and value to society.”
Although human activity and habitation can be traced back for more than a thousand years in the forest, the area has been inhabited and used by humans for far longer.
The use and design of the forest has changed over the centuries to produce Savernake’s mosaic of veteran trees, wood pasture, grassland, and pond habitat, which is bursting with scarce flora and fauna. Most of the forest is designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) because of the concentration of rare habitats, plants, mammals, reptiles, invertebrates, fungi, lichen, and more. Savernake Forest is also home to around 7000 veteran trees, some of them among the oldest trees in Europe.
Click here to give your input to and have a say in the future of Savernake Forest.
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