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Chalk and TreesTHE MAGAZINE OF THE CHILTERNS CONSERVATION BOARD

WINTER 2015/16

Free app for Chilterns walks

Cheers! A special brew for the Chilterns’ 50th

Winning entries in the 2015 Buildings Design Awards

1965–2015

contents

The Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) was designated in 1965 and covers 833 sq kms. It is one of 46 AONBs in the UK which, along with National Parks, are protected as the finest landscapes in the country.

The Chilterns Conservation Board is the public body established in 2004 to conserve and enhance the Chilterns AONB. Its 27 members are drawn from local communities and it has a staff team of 9.

Printed by Polestar, Banbury – sustainable and environmentally friendly printing

12GHASTLY GANTRIESFighting an ugly intrusion in south Oxfordshire

18GYPSY LIFEThe close ties between Gypsies and local commons in the past

14 BOX TREASURESHow a historic habitat is being conserved and celebrated

ChAlk AnD Trees WinTer 2015/6Published by the Chilterns Conservation BoardThe Lodge, 90 Station Road, Chinnor, Oxon OX39 4HA

Tel: 01844 355500 Email: [email protected]: www.chilternsaonb.org

Chairman: Ian Reay

staffSue Holden Chief Officer 01844 355505 [email protected] Murfett Planning Officer 01844 355507 [email protected] Daly Countryside Officer 01844 355524 [email protected] Venters Access Officer 01844 355508 [email protected] Jackson Conservation & Landscape Officer 01844 355523 [email protected] Beechey Chalk Streams Officer 01844 355502 [email protected] Forrest Information & Interpretation Officer 01844 355521 [email protected] Cathy Rose Activities & Learning Officer 01844 355506 [email protected] Webb Administration Officer 01844 355500 [email protected]

ChAlk AnD Trees suBsCripTionFor just £5 per year get Chalk and Trees posted to you twice a year. Visit www.chilternsaonb.org/shop or call 01844 355500 to set up a subscription.

WilDliFe AnD CounTrysiDe evenTsVisit www.chilternsaonb.org/events for a regularly-updated calendar of events taking place across the Chilterns area

Design: Amanda Carroll, [email protected]

Advertising: contact Qwerty Advance Publications at [email protected] or call 0118 930 2222

Photo credits: Chris Smith, John Morris, Colin Drake, Ian Rolfe

Main cover image: Martin Fowler / Shutterstock

To find out more about the Chilterns AONB and the Conservation Board visit www.chilternsaonb.org

Three overall winners in 2015 Design Awards 8

3Winter 2015/16 Chalk and Trees

Using a smartphone on a walk near Goring-on-Thames

More circular walks on commonsAnother two leaflets on circular walking routes through local commons have been published, to complete a set of seven walks created by the Chilterns Commons Project.

There are circular walks from Christmas Common near Watlington, ranging from 2.5 to 6 miles in length. They pass through ancient woodland and former commonland, along historic tracks and take in great views from the edge of the Chilterns. The other leaflet contains two long circular walks: a 12 mile walk from Marlow and a 10 mile walk from West Wycombe which go through attractive places such as Marlow Common, Moorend Common, West Wycombe village and hill and Wheeler End Common. Real keenies can combine both walks into an 18 mile hike!

These leaflets and the five other commons walk leaflets can be downloaded from www.chilternsaonb.org/walks

New app for Chilterns Country walks

Walkers at the Dashwood Mausoleum on West Wycombe Hill

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OUT AND ABOUT WALKING

WalkingYou can now follow a number of circular walks from the Chilterns Country series on your smartphone via a free app. The Handheld Tours app is available in iPhone and Android versions. It’s completely free to download, and in it you’ll find a Chilterns AONB section containing circular walks near Tring, Wendover, Princes Risborough, High Wycombe, Chinnor, Little Marlow, Beaconsfield and Goring-on-Thames.

The walks vary in length from 2 to 10 miles. By enabling the GPS on your phone at the start of the walk you can follow your progress on the route map. There’s also information about points of interest, images and useful links. A really handy feature of the app is that you download all the walk details in advance so you don’t need to be connected to the internet when out on the walk!

Visit www.handheldtours.co.uk to find out more and download the app.

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OUT AND ABOUT CYCLING AND EVENTS

Festive fun at the FayreSolve those Christmas present dilemmas and support some local businesses by coming to the Chilterns Festive Fayre on Saturday 5th December in Stokenchurch. The Chilterns Conservation Board and the Chiltern Society have joined forces to organise this craft and food event featuring some high quality artisans and producers from across the Chilterns area.

It is a chance to browse and buy locally-produced textiles, jewellery, wildlife art, children’s gifts, condiments and much more. The Fayre is running from 10am – 2.30pm at the King’s Hotel in Stokenchurch, near High Wycombe. £2 entry per person.

Plan an outing using new cycle guidesThe Cycle Chilterns Project has now finished but it has created a wealth of information about cycling in the Chilterns area, all of which is available on its website www.cyclechilterns.co.uk.

It has produced some really useful cyclists’ guides to Henley-on-Thames, Great Missenden and Tring. They are packed with information on what there is to see and do in the towns, the location of facilities dear to cyclists such as cafes and bike repair shops, how to reach the towns by road or public transport and most importantly, a listing of the best cycling routes nearby. It is all displayed on an interactive map within each guide. If your question isn’t answered there are also links for more local information. Whether you are a visitor or resident the guides provide pretty much everything you need to plan a day’s outing or a short cycling break.

Go to www.cyclechilterns.co.uk and search using the Cycle Guide category.

Lots of locally-made gifts will be on sale at the Fayre

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Carnival in Henley

Cycling and events


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NEWS AT THE BOARD

NOTICEBOARD

GrAnTs For proJeCTsMany people, businesses, communities, and local groups have great ideas for projects to care for the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and make it a better place to live, work and visit.

The Conservation Board can help turn those ideas into reality through grants available from its easy-to-access Special Projects Scheme.

If you need funding for a project within the AONB, do get in touch with the Board to find out if it might be eligible for a small grant. This year the Board is particularly interested in supporting work in a number of themes: projects to conserve habitat in priority areas, site interpretation, educational resources and the 50th anniversary of the AONB. Individuals, community groups, charities and not-for-profit organisations can apply. They key thing is that your project benefits the wider community and the AONB.

Find out more at www.chilternsaonb.org/funding-for-projects and call Neil Jackson at the Board for a chat on 01844 355523.

New Chief Officer appointed The staff team at the Chilterns Conservation Board has a new leader: Sue Holden has been appointed as Chief Officer and will be in post from October 2015.

The staff team is responsible for carrying out the Board’s work, conserving and enhancing the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and encouraging people to enjoy all its special qualities. Sue has been involved with the Board since April as a Board member but has resigned that position to become Chief Officer.

“Since moving to the Chilterns last year I’ve come to love this very beautiful area” she says. “I’m really looking forward to championing the AONB and the work of the Board in caring for it.”

Sue has a lot of experience as a leader in the environmental field, having been Chief Executive of the Woodland Trust for nine years and more recently Chief Executive of Earthwatch Europe. She will be out and about a lot during the autumn, meeting colleagues in partner organisations and seeing the Board’s work at first hand.

Fresh blood on the Board The Chilterns Conservation Board has 27 members, who are nominated by local authorities in the Chilterns area, elected by parish councils or selected from applications by the public. Recently there has been an influx of new members, following a number of retirements. There are five new members nominated by local authorities:

uCllr Jacqui Burnett Luton Borough Council

uCllr Ken Janes Central Bedfordshire Council

uCllr Heather Kenison Three Rivers District Council

uCllr Hugh McCarthy Wycombe District Council

uCllr Andrew Southam Aylesbury Vale District Council

Parish councils across the Chilterns AONB elect members to the Board, by county. Three new members have been elected recently:

uMichael Stonnell, Bedfordshire ParishesuGeorge Case Buckinghamshire ParishesuSusan Biggs Oxfordshire Parishes

Children on an educational visit to Ewelme Watercress Beds

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Celebration evening with Richard MabeyThe well-known naturalist and writer Richard Mabey is guest speaker at a special evening organised by the Chilterns Conservation Board to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Tickets are selling fast for ‘The Outstanding Chilterns’ event on 25th November at the Elgiva Theatre in Chesham so book now if you are interested!

Richard Mabey, author of Beechcombings and many other books, was born and bred in Berkhamsted and lived in the Chilterns for many years, during some of which he owned and managed a beechwood near Tring. His talk will delve into his childhood memories of exploring the woods and commons around Berkhamsted and reflect on how his time in the Chilterns influenced his thoughts on landscape and people.

The evening will also include a presentation from the Board’s new Chief Officer Sue Holden and a display of photos from the last five decades. Tickets are £12 per head – visit www.chilternsaonb.org/events or call 01844 355500 to book.

Learning to spot this evidence and understand what it tells us can shed a fascinating light on past lives and just how impor-tant the woods were for people’s livelihoods in previous centu-ries. Come along for an absorbing day in ancient Pigotts Wood near High Wycombe and discover sawpits, charcoal hearths, lynchets, quarries and plenty more. The dates of the one day courses are 11th and 12th March 2016 and the cost is £35 per person.

To find out more and book on any of the above courses visit www.chilternsaonb.org/events or contact John Morrison 01844 355503.

Would you like to know more about the trees, wildlife and history of our local woods? John Morris of the Chiltern Woodlands Project, who has over 30 years’ experience of studying and managing woodlands, is running some courses for the public this autumn and winter.

Tree and shrub identificationThere’s a great range of trees and shrubs to be found in Chiltern woodlands – how do you tell what’s what? Woody species have a lot of distinctive features, depending on the time of year, that give away their identity. In autumn the leaves, fruits, nuts and seeds provide many clues. Later on at the end of winter studying the bark and buds is a good way to pin

down the species. To make the most of the seasons the Chiltern Woodlands Project

is running one day courses in tree and shrub identification on 6th November 2015 and 4th March 2016. They include a

guided walk around Bottom Wood near Stokenchurch and a session identifying species from samples

collected. The cost is £20 per head.

Woodland archaeologyHave you sometimes spotted mysterious lumps, bumps and hollows in local woodlands and wondered what they are? Many Chilterns woods have been around for hundreds of years or more and are full of evidence of human activity from the past, if you know what you’re looking at!

Winter 2015/16 Chalk and Trees 7

EVENTS COURSES AND TALKS

An educational walk in the woods


AWARDS NEWS CHILTERNS BUILDINGS DESIGN AWARDS

There was such a varied and strong field of entries for this year’s Chilterns Buildings Design Awards that the judges ended up selecting three overall winners – a restored historic barn, a new block of flats and an extended cottage. The awards are offered annually by the Chilterns Conservation Board and the Chiltern Society to encourage high standards of design.

The new, the old and the restored win top prizes in design awards

Warwick House is a new Regency-style building in Hemel’s Old Town which contains six flats. This new development fits extremely well with the historic old buildings of the High Street and has been designed with great sensitivity to its location.

Richard Wheeler, Chairman of the judges, commented: “Warwick House picks up a lot of the motifs of the surrounding buildings, and is a quiet and gentle example of building in the Regency idiom. It is good to see this new building adding to the accommodation provision in the town centre as well.”

Warwick House is built on the site of a 1920s house which was owned by the father of its architect and is named after him. It sits in a very attractive location, surrounded by the green expanse of Gadebridge Park on two sides.

The Great Barn originally dates from 1492, when it was built at St Albans Monastery as a threshing barn. Nearly 300 years later the barn was sold, taken down and re-built next to the new Micklefield Hall between Rickmansworth and Sarratt.

By 2010 the Barn had fallen into disrepair and was in danger of collapse. Jamie and Anna Rankin, the current owners of the Hall, began a long-term and carefully planned restoration project to bring the Barn back to its former glory, which was completed in 2014.

“This is a stunning restoration of a historic Grade II-listed barn. Elements such as the concealed engineering have been done extremely well. We also admired the owners’ sustainable approach to heating the building by using woodfuel from their own estate at Micklefield,” said Richard Wheeler.

The Barn is now a venue for community functions and weddings which make use of the lovely gardens next to it.

overall winner (new Build)Warwick house, high street, hemel hempstead

owners: Jamie and Anna Rankin

Architect: Tony Mealing, GMTW Architects, Marlow

Build project Manager: Charlie Laing, Charlie Laing Ltd, Rick’worth

Brick supplier: Bovingdon Bricks, Hertfordshire

overall winner (restoration) The Great Barn, Micklefield hall, rickmansworth

Warwick House picks up a lot of the motifs of the surrounding buildings. Richard Wheeler, Chairman of the Chilterns Buildings Design Awards judging panel

owner: Butlers Mead Developments

Architect: Victor Warwick, Hemel H’stead

Builder: Butlers Mead Developments, Essendon, Herts

Vicky and Eamonn Barrett had lived in their traditional cosy cottage in Speen for about 15 years with their family before deciding to take the plunge and go ahead with a long talked-about extension to provide more space. The result is highly successful – some very useful light family spaces have been provided but the overall intimate cottage feel has been retained. The replacement of an unattractive garage with one more in keeping with the building has also helped the property to improve its village street locality.

“We found an excellent local architect and a builder for the project and formed very good working relationships with them which I think helped to achieve a really successful result that we’re delighted with,” said Eamonn Barrett.

The judges were impressed by how the cottage has retained its traditional feel after being extended and admired the careful attention to detail which pulls the whole building together.

owners: Vicky and Eamonn Barrett

Architect: Jeremy Symondson, Foursquare Land Ltd, Gt Hampden

Builder: Chris Warren Construction, Great Missenden

AWARDS NEWS CHILTERNS BUILDINGS DESIGN AWARDS

highly Commended Chiltern hills Academy, Chesham

The Chiltern Hills Academy had grown rather haphazardly over a number of decades resulting in a disjointed layout, with a number of ageing buildings. A multi-million pound project to remodel the school and create an improved learning environ-ment, as well as useful community spaces, started in August 2012 and was completed in September 2013. The students contributed many ideas to the design process. The judges were struck by how the building’s design makes the most of the lovely views out to the surrounding Chilterns countryside.

principal: Kevin Patrick

Architect: Marcus W Burley, BAM Design, St Albans

Builder: BAM Construction (South East), St Albans

Brick supplier: Bovingdon Bricks, Hertfordshire

2016 awardsEntries are welcome for the 2016 Chilterns Buildings Design Awards. The closing date is March 1st 2016 and schemes must be three years old or less.

Entry forms are available from the Chiltern Society on 01494 771250 or email [email protected]

overall winner (renovation) Crendon Cottage, Chapel hill, speen

Chiltern Hills Academy

BOVINGDON AWARD WINNING

BRICKSpreserve our architectural heritage

Craftsmen-made bricks

Renowned attractive colour and texture

Local Chiltern councils approved

Traditional methods

Wide range of special types and sizes of brick

Personal service, bespoke mixes

Great Barn, Micklefield Hall

Overall Winner

(Restoration)2015 Chiltern

Buildings Design Awards

Highly Commended

2015 Chiltern Buildings Design

Awards

01442 833176www.bovingdonbricks.co.uk







Traditional methods




Overall Winner



Highly Commended


Awards








Traditional methods




Overall Winner



Highly Commended


Awards










Traditional methods




Overall Winner



Highly Commended


Awards


Overall Winner



Highly Commended2015 Chiltern



PICTURE GALLERY THE RIDGEWAY

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A bluebell wood on the Trail near Wallingford

The undulating ribbon of the ridgeway national Trail, which follows the spine of the Chiltern hills from Goring to ivinghoe, is one of the jewels of the Area of outstanding natural Beauty. here we celebrate all that the ridgeway has to offer, from breath-taking

views to quiet woodland glades, attractive places to explore and welcoming havens when the legs need a rest!

The mellow miles of the Ridgeway

There are plenty of good pubs and cafes along the ridgeway. This one is on Wendover high street, part of the Trail!

Walking on the ivinghoe hills, at the northern end of the ridgeway

Winter 2015/6 Chalk and Trees10

PICTURE GALLERY THE RIDGEWAY

A panoramic view from Coombe hill near Wendover

An autumnal wood at Aldbury nowers nature reserve near Tring

The lock at Goring on the river Thames. The ridgeway crosses the river here and heads south through the north Wessex Downs AonB to Avebury in Wiltshire.

I shall desire and I shall find The best of my desires; The autumn road, the mellow wind That soothes the darkening shires. And laughter, and inn-fires.

From ‘The Chilterns’ by Rupert Brooke, who often walked paths that are now part of the Trail.

How you can enjoy the RidgewayThere are a number of half day circular walking routes which include a section of the Trail – visit www.chilternsaonb.org/ridgeway to download free leaflets for them. Some of these can be found in a free walking app by Handheld Tours available for Apple and Android devices. If you fancy a short break why not spend a couple of days walking in the beautiful Chilterns countryside, using the Ridgeway and other promoted routes? Visit the webpage above for ideas on two-day breaks, including suggestions of great places to stay and to eat.

The management and promotion of the Ridgeway National Trail had a real boost in 2015 with the launch of the Ridgeway Partnership and the appointment of a new Ridgeway Trail Officer.

Visit www.nationaltrail.co.uk/ridgeway to find out lots more about the route, what’s going on and how you could get involved in caring for it.

Winter 2015/16 Chalk and Trees 11

PLANNING INAPPROPRIATE DEVELOPMENT

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The arrival this spring of ugly steel gantries on the Great Western Railway line through Goring and South Stoke in the southern Chilterns has caused huge concern to local residents and the Chilterns Conservation Board. The GWR was designed by Brunel in the 1830s to connect London and Bristol. Network Rail is currently undertaking a major, 10-year modernisation programme on the line. This includes upgrades to stations and electrification of parts of the route, including the section between Reading and Didcot. Work has rushed ahead on this section because it was chosen as the test track for the new trains and equipment, even though it runs through the North Wessex Downs and Chilterns AONBs.

Electrification has its positives, enabling trains to run faster and more quietly, with lower carbon emissions than diesel trains. However, it requires the installation of much infrastructure, including masts and gantries to carry the wires above the track. There are overhead line designs available which are more aesthetically pleasing and reduce the impact on the landscape, but they are not being fitted here. To the great concern of local residents and the Conservation Board, the gantries being installed along the Great Western line through the Chilterns AONB are large, ugly and intrusive, completely out of keeping with a nationally-protected landscape. How has this happened?

legal duty to conserveNetwork Rail is using Permitted Development Rights to carry out work to the track without needing planning permission.However, by law, as a ‘statutory undertaker’ Network Rail must ‘have regard to the purpose of conserving and enhancing the natural beauty of the AONB’ when carrying out work affecting an AONB. In other words, its activities should at the very least keep this protected landscape the same, or ideally improve it. However, even its own environmental statement concludes that gantries on the line between Goring and Moulsford would be

Fight to protect the Goring Gapprominent and would have a permanent and adverse impact on the landscape. Now that the first structures have been installed their utilitarian ugliness is clear for all to see. The Conservation Board believes that Network Rail has failed in its statutory duty to conserve and enhance the Chilterns AONB.

In 2013 Network Rail committed to consulting the Chilterns and North Wessex Downs AONBs at the detailed design stage. This didn’t happen, and the detailed plans have still not been shared with us or published, even though construction is underway. “It feels like we’ve been forgotten,” says Lucy Murfett, the Board’s Planning Officer. “The section through the AONBs is getting the worst possible design of overhead gantry. I am sure we could work with Network Rail to get a better solution that would fit with these lovely and nationally-protected landscapes.”

The Board’s concerns were expressed formally to Network Rail via a letter from its Chairman, stating that the gantries “have a significant detrimental impact on the landscape of the AONB and the Board would like to see them removed and replaced with a much less visually intrusive alternative.” Constructive dialogue has now begun with Network Rail and the Board’s Planning Officer has met with them. Local residents have organised themselves into an action group (see www.savegor-inggap.com) and are publicising the issue widely as well as taking part in conversations with Network Rail.

The section through the AONBs is getting the worst possible design of overhead gantry. I am sure we could work with Network Rail to get a better solution that would fit with these lovely and nationally-protected landscapes.lucy Murfett, Board’s planning officer

It is hoped these efforts will persuade Network Rail to meet its legal obligations and modify the electrification equipment to reduce the harm on the sensitive landscapes of the Chilterns and North Wessex Downs AONBs. The Board and local residents will be pursuing this desired outcome with great tenacity.


RUNNING HEAD fURtHER DEtAIl

Where does your passion for the Chilterns come from?I am Chilterns born and bred – I grew up in Buckland Common near Tring and my family go back generations in the area. As a child I played on the common and in the woods around my village and that’s where my love of this area developed. I strongly believe that everyone has the right to enjoy tranquil green spaces near to where they live – it’s essential for our health and well-being.

What did you do in your working life?I had quite a variety of jobs for some years, while raising a family at the same time. I then completed a degree with the Open University in History and English Literature and fulfilled a lifelong ambition by training to become a primary school teacher. I taught at Ley Hill School for nearly 10 years and loved it.

how did you become a campaigner?Well, my campaigning career started early – years ago when my daughter’s nursery school was under threat of closure, I went along with lots of other mums with babies in buggies and protested outside the Council offices. The closure was stopped! In recent years I have been very actively involved with the Chiltern Countryside Group (CCG), an action group which was actually founded in my sitting room in 2008.

Why was the Chiltern Countryside Group set up?In 2008 the National Air Traffic Service consulted on its proposals to make changes to flightpaths, which would have resulted in many more aircraft overflying the Chilterns at low levels. This alarmed a lot of people, including me. The Chiltern Countryside Group evolved organically from a number of us who got together to voice our concerns about the proposed changes.

As a result of our efforts and those of others who protested, the proposals were withdrawn. We now have regular dialogue with Luton Airport.

We talked to sue yeomans from Tring, who is a passionate campaigner for protecting the Chilterns countryside, especially its tranquillity.

INTERVIEWTHE CHALK & TREES

sue yeomans

What does the Group do?Our work is led by our mission statement ‘Preserving the peace of the Chilterns’. We have a number of experts in our Steering Group, who have knowledge of the aviation industry, noise consultants, professionals in health and the media and so on. Perhaps more importantly we have many supporters, across the Chilterns and beyond, who care deeply for this area and want us to represent their concerns when there are threats to the rural character and tranquillity of the AONB. We’ve been actively campaigning against the proposals to build the HS2 rail line through the Chilterns since these were first announced in 2010, which has meant a lot of work and many hours in meetings.

What’s the hardest thing you’ve done as a campaigner?Appearing before the HS2 Select Committee in the House of Commons in July 2015 to give evidence about the case for a long tunnel under the Chilterns was quite a daunting task.

What have you learnt from your work with the Chiltern Countryside Group?You shouldn’t be afraid about challenging the authorities - it is possible to be heard and to make a difference. I’ve also learnt that making good partnerships with others is really important when running a group. The CCG has made strong links with local councils and bodies like the Chilterns Conservation Board which have helped us with the challenges and commitment of the past seven years.

What is your favourite part of the Chilterns?I have a few but one of my favourites, which is also very local to me, is the wonderful view towards Aldbury from the Ashridge Estate – a classic English landscape.

Find out more about the Chiltern Countryside Group at www.chilterncountrysidegroup.org

INTERVIEW SUE YEOMANS


A rich heritageBox is commonly thought of as a hedging and decorative plant in gardens, but it is actually a native tree in woodlands across southern England, western Europe and the Mediterranean area. In the wild it grows slowly on chalky soils, eventually reaching about 9m in height after 100 years, and is often found on steep slopes where larger trees struggle to survive.

Wild box woodlands were once much more common in southern England, and are the reason why quite a few place names have ‘box’ in them. Today, there are only 10 recognised native sites. The three most important are Box Hill in Surrey, Boxwell in the Cotswolds and a large area of box woodland on the Chilterns escarpment near Great Kimble which dates back to at least the 1600s.

Box is fascinating, not just for its ecology but for the rich human story associated with it. There is evidence that the Romans used it in burials (perhaps associating evergreen with everlasting life). The dense, hard quality of box timber made it ideal for a great variety of uses, from everyday items to intricately-carved, highly decorative objects. Practical tools like pastry cutters, lace bobbins and rulers were all made from boxwood. From the 16th to 18th centuries box was the wood of choice for woodwind instruments, such as the chalumeau (a predecessor of the clarinet), and it was also used extensively as inlay in furniture. By the 19th century newspapers and book publishers were

livening up their publications with illustrations produced using finely-engraved blocks of boxwood. The demand for box timber from places like the Chilterns eventually saw a decline in box woods and is one of the main reasons that we only have fragments left of this historic habitat.

Why the Chilterns is special for boxThe steep chalk slopes of the Chilterns are an ideal place for box to grow: if you keep your eyes open you may come across ancient, twisted box trees growing under the main forest canopy. Place names like Boxmoor near Hemel Hempstead and Bix near Henley reveal how widespread it was across the area. The jewel in the crown is the extensive area of box woodland on hillsides at Ellesborough and Kimble Warrens near Princes Risborough. This is the largest area of wild box in the country and in 1915 was picked out by Charles Rothschild, founder of the Wildlife Trusts, as worthy of national protection. It is now a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

The importance of the Chilterns for this rare and historic habitat prompted the Chilterns Conservation Board in 2012 to secure a grant of nearly £80,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund and support from partner organisations for a project to research and promote the history, ecology and cultural heritage of box woodland. The Chilterns Box Woodland Project ran from January 2013 to June 2015 and brought together foresters, ecologists, gardeners, historians, musicians and woodworkers.

The treasures of Chilterns box

The Chilterns is one of the few places in the uk where native box trees still grow wild in the countryside. over the last two and a half years the Conservation Board’s Box Woodland project has uncovered the rich history behind our little-known box woods and helped to conserve them for the future.

The Box Wood Walk at Ellesborough and Kimble Warrens

PROJECT CHILTERNS BOX

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PROJECT CHILTERNS BOX

What has been achieved?The Box Project set out to research the extent of remaining box woodlands in the Chilterns, promote the cultural heritage of box and investigate ways of conserving it for the future. Its main achievements are:

uOver 70 volunteers got involved with the Project and made a huge contribution to its work.

uOver 300 records of box in the Chilterns have been collected into one dataset, providing a comprehensive picture of how much we have here.

uA new circular walking route through Ellesborough and Kimble Warrens is enabling the public to enjoy the country’s largest box woodland, download it at www.chilternsaonb.org/box-wood-walks

u15,000 box seeds have been sent to the Millennium Seed Bank at Wakehurst.

u407 box plants have been grown from Chilterns’ cuttings so we now have a good stock of local provenance box to establish new woodlands.

uEvents, webpages, leaflets and guided walks have raised the profile of our local box woods and the history, art and craftsmanship linked to them.

uA guide to managing box trees and box woodlands in the countryside has been produced, a first of its kind.

uA set of education resources for primary school children is available, including activity sheets, short films and a box of physical objects to explore.

The futureThe Project may have finished but the Board and other organisations like the Chiltern Society, National Trust and Forestry Commission will continue to promote our local box woods and the importance of managing them, especially in the face of threats such as box blight and the newly-arrived box tree caterpillar.

You can help too – if you find box growing wild do submit a record to your local environmental records centre.

Lots of information on the history of box, where you can enjoy it and copies of publications produced by the Project can all be found at www.chilternsaonb.org/box

Playing a boxwood chalumeau

A great cultural legacyThe ideal nature of boxwood for fine carving and engraving has resulted in a treasure trove of objects over the centuries.

Boxwood print by Edward Stamp

Chess pieces


PRODUCTS BEER AND GIFTS


Calling all ale-lovers – a special beer to celebrate the 50th anniversaries of the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and the Chiltern Society has been brewed by the Chiltern Brewery.‘Chiltern Double Fifty’ is on sale in the autumn in many pubs throughout the Chilterns, and at the Chiltern Brewery shop. 5p from every pint sold will go to support the work of the Chiltern Society and the Chilterns Conservation Board.

Chiltern Brewery spokesman Tom Jenkinson said: “This year is a special one for everyone who loves the Chilterns - both the Society and the AONB have been instrumental in protecting and conserving this unique countryside for the past 50 years. So we want to say ‘Cheers’ by developing a special brew to mark the occasion.”

The anniversary beer is a dark amber with smooth roast malt and a citrus aroma, designed to have an autumnal feel. It’s available on draught in pubs throughout Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and parts of Oxfordshire and Bedfordshire – look out for the special pump clip (pictured).

Visit www.chilternbrewery.co.uk/stockists for a full list of pubs.

The Chiltern Brewery, based near Aylesbury, is the oldest independent brewery in the Chilterns and is now in its 35th year of producing bottled and draught beers. All its products are available in its shop as well as a good range of other locally-produced food and drink.

Brewing up a double celebration

Stunning new range of Chilterns photo giftsLocal photographer Chris Smith has produced a range of merchandise featuring some of his stunning images of the Chilterns, and he is donating 20% of all sales income to the Chilterns Conservation Board.

The range includes cards, mouse mats, notebooks, mugs, prints and a lovely 2016 calendar. So if you’re looking for a unique gift and would like to support the conservation of the Chilterns Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, look no further! The products feature photos taken near Ivinghoe, Whipsnade, Marlow, Chinnor and Watlington and include some great shots of red kites, bluebell woods, wildflowers, rolling hills and the River Thames.

They can be ordered from www.chilternphotogifts.co.uk

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Stay in touchWould you like to have the latest news from the Chilterns on conservation issues, projects, walking and cycling routes, events for the public, rural skills courses and more delivered to your inbox every month? Sign up for the Conservation Board’s free monthly e-newsletter and be one of the first to hear what’s happening.

You’ll find a sign-up box on our homepage www.chilternsaonb.org

Never miss an issue of Chalk and Trees – subscribe for just £5 per year and get it posted to you in April and October.

Set up a subscription by visiting www.chilternsaonb.org/shop or call the Conservation Board on 01844 355500.

For frequent updates, photos and links follow the Board on social media:

@ChilternsAONB

www.facebook.com/ChilternsAONB


HISTORY COMMONS

Gypsies on common groundGypsy and Traveller people played a huge part in the community life of the Chilterns in past centuries, and it all centred on our local commons.These were different times from today, when Gypsy and Traveller communities often experience discrimination and there can be conflict between them and settled communities as they try and pursue a traditional nomadic lifestyle.

In the 18th and 19th centuries Gypsies and Travellers were an essential source of seasonal labour and also had an important role at the heart of village celebrations, providing the music for dancing and merry-making. The lives of Gypsies were inextricably linked with the many areas of commonland in the Chilterns, which provided them with a place to stay, were a source of materials for the items they sold and contained small-scale industries like brick-making that made use of Gypsy labour.

Camping on the commonsFor people living near commons, like the ones at Hawridge and Cholesbury near Wendover or Nettlebed Common further south, it would have been a familiar sight to see the Gypsy families arrive in their carts and caravans and set up camp. Their horses would graze on the open grassland and in the woods the Gypsies collected brush for fuel and wood to make the items they sold, like pegs and besom brooms. They would offer their services as casual labourers to local farmers and earned money from villagers through mending pots and kettles and sharpening knives and scissors on their mobile grinding machines.

Brick and tile-making was widespread on Chiltern commons at this time because of the abundance of clay that could be quarried from them and the availability of wood for firing the kilns. There was a seasonal rhythm to the industry, with clay dug out in the autumn and left to weather in the frosts over winter before brick-making commenced in spring.

A photograph said to be of Elizabeth Leatherland, an aged Gypsy

A Gypsy knife grinder on Berkhamsted Common

Adapted from ‘On Common Ground’ by Dr Anne-Marie Ford, one of six essays on the social history of Chiltern Commons, published collectively as Our Common Heritage by the Chilterns Commons Project in January 2015.

More information at www.chilternsaonb.org/history-project

Gypsies and Travellers often provided the labour to dig clay, mould the bricks and tiles and run the kilns. It wasn’t all hard work though: the musical skills of Gypsies were another very important means for them to earn money, and helped them gain the affection and appreciation of the settled population.

A Hertfordshire newspaper from 13th June 1840 paints a vivid picture of a feast day:

Still many a fair lass was trotted out by the lad she smiled on, to trip the light fantastic to the sounds produced by the joint efforts of a swarthy Gypsy fiddler, and an old gentleman with his clarinet. Nor must the dark-eyed Gypsy lady with a frill of black lace round her bonnet be forgotten, nor her valuable accompaniment on the tambourine.

Large fairs frequented by the Gypsies were held at Dunstable Downs and in Oxford. The Stokenchurch Horse Fair was another very popular event, held on July 10th and 11th each year, and the scene of much horse-dealing.

As the 20th century arrived, technological development and social change meant that Gypsies and Travellers had to adapt. Many gave up the nomadic life and became part of the settled population, and the character of our commons has not been quite the same since.

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Peterley Lane, Prestwood, HP16 0HH Tel 01494 863566Opening times: Tuesday–Friday 8.30–5.30pm,Saturday 8.30–5pm, Sunday 9am–1pmClosed: Mondays www.peterleymanorfarm.co.uk

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