Received this letter today and thought I’d put it on the website:
Dear Sir or Madam
I am writing to you to let you know about some important woodland and landscape restoration work that is planned for the National Trust’s land holdings at Longshaw, between Sheffield and Hathersage, and to give you an opportunity to comment and feed into our management of this work.
The work is planned to happen gradually over the next 5 to 10 years, and is funded by Natural England, through a Higher Level Stewardship scheme, and the Forestry Commission through its English Woodland Grant Scheme.
There are 3 streams to the proposed work:
1. Wood Pasture Restoration:
We are planning to restore the area known as Sheffield Plantation to ‘wood pasture’, which was the habitat that existed in this area until the 1950’s and 1960’s when the existing mixed conifer and broadleaf plantations were planted around surviving old Oak trees. The areas adjacent to the Sheffield Plantation, with open pasture and scattered mature Oak trees, highlight what much of the plantation once looked like.
The work planned will involved gradually removing the more recently planted conifers, and giving the surviving native ’veteran’ trees the space they need to thrive, and also releasing the next generation of young native trees in the plantations. As the trees are thinned out, livestock will be able to graze under the more open areas, benefiting wildlife. A couple of areas will remain fenced as habitat for Woodcock, a declining woodland bird.
Native trees will also be planted in cattle guards over the Sheffield Plantation area.
2. Oxhay & Bolehill wood enclosure:
This wood is currently being enclosed to keep out livestock, to allow natural regeneration of trees and plants. The area is semi ancient woodland, a UK BAP priority habitat for conservation Nearly a kilometre of dry stone walls will be built and 1.5km of fencing, with gates to allow access to public footpaths.
3. Woodland work over the rest of Longshaw:
Coppicing, thinning and widening of rides along some footpaths to improve habitat for woodland birds such as redstart, spotted flycatcher, wood warbler and lesser spotted woodpecker.
We are currently compiling a leaflet with more information, which I will send you in due course, but in the mean time if you would like to know more about the proposals, please visit the Longshaw tea room where we have a display about the work. Alternatively, you can contact me on 01433 670 908 Monday to Wednesday.
Additionally, we will be running informative walks about the work on 7th June at 19.00 – 20.30 and on 9th June at 10.00 – 11.30. If you would like to book on one of these walks, please call 01433 670 368 or email peakdistrict@nationaltrust.org.uk.
As each phase of work is planned, information signs and notices will be placed in the relevant parts of Longshaw. The actual thinning, felling and coppicing work itself will be undertaken from late summer each year through into the winter, to avoid the bird breeding season.
The National Trust’s approach to woodland management is certified (Certificate Number SA-FM/COC-001526) by the Forest Stewardship Council (the FSC) as meeting international standards of sustainable woodland management.
Yours sincerely
Helen Armstrong
Project Officer – Peak District
01433 670 908
t National Trust