Forty people braved a freezing night in November to join the Friends of Pontesford Hill for a public consultation on the future management of the hill. It was an exciting and informative evening: thank you very much to all of you who attended and to those who contributed by email.

In general, people expressed confidence in the direction we are heading. They strongly supported action to improve the existing habitats and to increase diversity. In particular, they supported two new fence lines: one to protect animals on the scree slope from dog attacks, and one to enclose the summit of Pontesford Hill, allowing grazing there to re-establish the acid grassland, and potentially increase the area of the SSRI at some point in the future.

People were broadly happy with our gradual “coppice coup” process of felling plantation conifers and encroaching sycamore along the bulldozer track to replant with mixed deciduous woodland trees, in particular hazel to encourage dormice. This process also favours woodland flowers and birds by opening up the woodland canopy. They supported a new coup area behind “the dens” where children play, to try to restore the lost bird life there. They emphasised that they wanted a gradual process over years, with no clear felling.

During the discussions, we were issued with some new challenges:

• It was pointed out that our bird boxes, originally used to encourage spotted flycatchers, are now only encouraging great tits and blue tits, which will outcompete the endangered willow tits. This is important as there are historical records of willow tits on the west side of the hill, and a bird which may have been a willow tit was visiting a bird feeder on Grove Lane last year. Our coppice coups on the bulldozer track are ideal habitat, and we have been asked to enhance them by manufacturing nest sites out of decaying silver birch trunks. At the same time, we will remove the old birdboxes to reduce the competition from more robust tits.
• The “upper ant hill meadow” habitat is declining due to lack of sheep grazing, and in  danger of losing its SSSI status. The issue here, as everywhere else, is the conflict between sheep grazing and dog walking. It was suggested that we ask The Dogs Trust for advice on the way forward, and we had many offers of help with management of stock and signage. People were very proud of the volunteer goat warden scheme we used last year, and we have offers of future help.

The final message was that public affection for the Hill remains as strong as ever, and people want more information about what is going on. We will try to address that communication gap via the village newsletter, posters and social media.

Thank you everyone for your support.

After days clearing the third coupe, we planted approximately 200 hazel, oak, hawthorn, rowan and holly whips. Many hands made light work 🙂

Thanks to a great group of volunteers, many hands made light work of path clearance and stile repair on a mild morning in early January.

With its fascinating history and special role within the county, it’s no surprise that Pontesford hill has been the subject of various news clips and short films over the years.

Here you can find links taking you to videos including a documentary film showing local school children honing their skills as natural historians, a clip from BBC radio Shropshire about the success of the locals securing the future of the hill and a few pieces of camera trap footage courtesy of the Shopshire Wildlife Trust showing the diversity of species found on and around the hill.

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The Friends of Pontesford Hill have managed to hold a “virtual AGM” process and have elected two new officers.

We owe an enormous “thank you” to Christopher Cooke and Brian Simmonds, the departing Chair and Treasurer for their years of work. Hopefully one day soon we will be able to thank them in person.

We welcome our new Chair, Quentin Shaw and Treasurer, John Turford. Our Secretary remains Richard Otto.

In these times it is more important than ever that we keep an up-to-date distribution list of freinds, and our first task will be to try to sort this out.

Enjoy the Hill. Please be thoughtful about your dogs and their waste.

The car park is open once again and we have seen a massive increase in visitors. You will notice how much the Hill benefited from a bit of a rest.

In particular, there is no dog poo or poo bags in evidence. Please try to keep it this way:

On the car park please “bag and bin” dog poo (there is a bin by the main gate).

On the paths please ‘stick and flick’: move poo off the paths into undergrowth by flicking with a stick, a stone, or the side of your boot.

Please never put down a poo bag or hang it on a branch “to collect on the way back”. Too many people forget. Poo bags themselves are an environmental risk.

Please also remember that UK Govt Social Distancing rules advise that dogs should be kept on leads in public spaces. These rules are still in force.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-advice-for-people-with-animals

Some great stuff to watch while on lock-down:

Stewart Edmunds of SWT used a camera trap to capture this amazing footage of wildlife on the Hill last year. Have a look to see some unexpected species just where you go for a walk (and you can also enjoy the beautiful views of the hill in summer: not long to wait now):

https://www.youtube.com/embed/jTD3LjEL-44

Brian Simmonds found this historic educational documentary on Facebook: Harlescott Grange Primary School children on the Hill in, I think, the early ’60s. You will recognize some of the individual trees, but the views have changed. These remarkable children will now be in their 60s or 70s. I wonder if we could identify them and invite them back to the Hill?

https://vimeo.com/127488327

The trees on Pontesford Hill had been relatively neglected for decades when the Wildlife Trust took over. It will take many years to bring the woods back to optimum habitat. This is the Trust’s Management Plan:

Management Plan Pontesford Hill 2016 – 21

1. What have we got? What is our vision?

Pontesford Hill is 26 hectares and is owned Freehold by SWT.

Pontesford Hill is primarily a wooded hillside with a number of other features within this wooded structure. There are two Scheduled Ancient Monuments (SAMs) within the site, Lower Camp hillfort and The Cross Dyke at the top of the hill. The rest of the site has no designations other than woodland that may require licences from FC for any felling works. Access is restricted, a bridleway and ‘bulldozer track’ circle the bottom of the hill but the bridleway is narrow and very muddy during the winter. Woodland on the site varies from pure conifer to predominantly mixed broadleaf.

In the long term the site will have an area of acid grassland on the summit with views across Shropshire. The hill will have a fringe of broadleaf, native woodland managed as coppice with standards and/or continuous cover woodland providing a source of timber and a valuable habitat for wildlife particularly dormice already present on nearby Earl’s Hill. The SAMs will be covered with a grassy sward easily visible and interpreted by the visiting public.

History and cultural features – For more information see the article written for the SCT in 1974 – The woodland on the east side of the Hill is very different in nature to other wooded areas as it was planted in the mid 1800s and may have been planted as much as a landscape feature as a resource for timber. It should be noted that the East and west of the Hill were in two different parishes and underwent very different development following inclosure in the early 1800s. The west side of the Hill was still grazing land until mid 1900s. After this date conifer plantations were planted and the abandonment of grazing allowed other nearby trees and woodland to spread.

2 Features

1. Conifer woodland – primarily Scots and Lodgepole Pine but Douglas fir and larch make up a narrow strip on lower ground (1a)
2. Mixed woodland – Dominated by sycamore many of which are large multi-stemmed specimens
3. Mixed woodland – dominated by a variety of native broadleaf with a substantial number of large mature Douglas Fir scattered through the canopy
4. Mixed broadleaf woodland – Oak, Beech and Sycamore canopy trees with some hazel coppice understory in places.
5. Lower Camp hillfort SAM
6. Cross Dyke SAM – some bracken and bramble encroachment
7. Bulldozer track – vehicle width stoned track
8. Pennywort and Cheilosa semifaciata
9. Car Park – to be resurfaced and enlarged
10. Interpretation – undergoing development to include a large welcome panel with map at the car park and some small post mounted panels at the SAMs
11. Access –bridleway runs from the road at the car park around the east of the hill whilst a footpath runs up and over the spine of the hill. There are two other smaller footpaths near the Hillfort.
12. Parish boundary mature larch avenue

3 Optimum Condition

1. Restore acid grassland where identified as suitable, create mixed native broadleaf woodland where acid grassland recreation is unfeasible or unsuitable. Also create and maintain viewpoint(s) and protect SAM (see 6). Retained woodland improved for a range of birds, insects and mammals such as dormice nearby on Earl’s Hill by long rotation coppice (15-20 years)
2. Mixed broadleaf woodland with an understory of coppiced hazel and other native shrubs (long rotation coppice with standards). Canopy a mix of species including sycamore, oak and ash. Woodland improved for a range of birds, insects and mammals such as dormice present nearby on Earl’s Hill
3. Mixed native broadleaf with the occasional conifer. Understorey of native broadleaf shrubs. Woodland improved for a range of birds, insects and mammals such as dormice present nearby on Earl’s Hill
4. Mixed native broadleaf woodland, oak and sycamore canopy species. Understorey of native broadleaf shrubs and hazel coppice on long rotation.
5. Open, short grassland sward across the majority of the SAM with a scatter of mature native broadleaf trees. No erosion of the sward.
6. Open, short grassland sward across the majority of the SAM. No erosion of the sward.
7. Open, sunny ride encouraging flowering plants and insects where possible. Care must be taken to maintain suitable conditions for pennywort and its associated hoverfly.
8. Maintain dappled shade where pennywort and hoverfly are present
9. Maintain suitable surface and prevent  inappropriate use of the car park with suitable barriers dividing the space
10. Maintain interpretation panels in suitable condition. Interpretation should be low key and appropriate to what is perceived by the local community and visitors as a, predominantly, natural area.
11. Access to be maintained in a suitable and safe condition. Further and/or enhanced access is not seen as appropriate for this site. Keep as natural as possible ie logs for benches along bulldozer track.
12. Veteran trees retained for as long as possible.

4 Management Prescriptions

1.  
   1. Clear fell majority of conifer plantation, remove brash and cordwood, and introduce grazing. Retain some ‘gateway’ trees near the location of the current stile to mark footpath route and act as historic features (Gone to Earth film).
   1.  Fell and replant coupes of native broadleaf trees within retained woodland.
   1. Create an area of hazel coppice to create views to southwest of Bromlow Callow, etc and create a diverse flower rich woodland edge (1b). nest box scheme?
2. Manage in approx. 15 coupes (50mx50m) as coppice with standards to create more light. Plant with oak, hazel and other appropriate native trees and shrubs. Retain mature sycamore specimens where appropriate whilst removing beech and conifer.
   1. Arrange inspection of sycamore specimens with severe rot in trunk. Manage as appropriate (coppice/pollard/veteran)
3. Gradual removal of non-native shrubs, eg rhododendron and laurel. Further investigation and surveys required to assess light levels and species diversity of the woodland to inform future management. Some, light touch, management may be proposed in the short term. Survey for dormouse. Assess/research cultural significance of woodland and its planting.?
4. Selective thinning of non-native trees, beech, conifer, sycamore, to favour native broadleaf. Re-coppice hazel as appropriate and where light is sufficient. Plant with native broadleaf where light levels allow.
5. Fell and treat young trees and scrub to prevent regrowth. Retain significant mature trees. Regular, annual cutting of bracken bramble and grass.
6. Annual clearance of bramble and bracken and strim grass.
7. The track itself should be kept clear and well maintained. Annual cutting of encroaching vegetation with flail and/or strimmer and volunteers. Selective felling of adjacent trees where this would allow more light to a wider ride to benefit flowers and insects. Selective felling should avoid opening areas of pennywort to too much light, retain dappled shade..
8. Regular surveys of pennywort and associated hoverfly (Cheilosa semifaciata) (2 years?) to check population and attempt to define ideal conditions.
9. Maintain surface to acceptable standard. Place and maintain obstructions (eg large logs and tree trunks) to divide car park and prevent unsociable behaviour such as ‘doughnuts’ in cars.
10. Interpretation should be low key, primarily focussed on the car park. Maintain any signage mounted in the car park and small ‘post panels’ on waymark and fingerposts.
11. Maintain access tracks, Public Rights of Way and associated furniture such as gates and stiles at suitable standards for required use. Enhanced access such as benches may be appropriate in limited amounts on the ‘Bulldozer track’ and footpath to the summit; in all cases these should be of natural materials (logs and boulders) to fit in with the location.
    1. Lay the hedge adjacent to the bridleway as you leave the car park to allow light into the woodland. Lay hedge over 5 years to reduce impact.
12. Fell dangerous trees next to the footpath. Retain other mature trees where possible. Veteran tree care may retain some trees into the medium term. Assess the potential for replanting this avenue/shelterbelt feature.