Council buys land for commoners

[Darren]

6:00pm Friday 29th March 2013 in News By Miranda Robertson

THE New Forest’s ancient farming traditions have received a boost after 
Hampshire County Council bought land at Rockford Common near Ringwood 
for commoning.

The council bought 15.78 acres as part of a partnership project between 
the New Forest National Park Authority, New Forest Trust, National 
Trust, Verderers, Commoners Defence Association, New Forest Association, 
The New Forest Pony Breeding and Cattle Society and Hampshire and Isle 
of Wight Wildlife Trust.

Commoning is the traditional system of farming in the New Forest and 
involves those with common rights allowing their stock to graze the 
commons with additional land being used to provide extra winter grazing 
and fodder.

A spokesman for the council said recent high prices of land within the 
New Forest has made it increasingly difficult for commoners to be able 
to purchase the essential extra land they need to allow commoning to 
continue.

The long-term management of the land has been passed to the New Forest 
Trust, which will decide how the land should be used to maximise the 
benefit to commoners. In the meantime the land has been let to a local 
commoner.

County council leader Ken Thornber said: “Commoning is of significant 
importance to the New Forest and dates back to 1079AD when the Forest 
was declared a royal hunting ground by King William I.

“Today, more than 8,000 ponies and cattle graze openly on the Forest, 
and ensure that it does not become overgrown with brambles, gorse and 
other coarse plant growth.

“Commoning also ensures that the New Forest remains a treasured asset 
for recreation and tourism, as well as one of the major lowland pasture 
woodlands in Europe, and the county council’s contribution towards 
safeguarding this ancient practice is good news.”

Alison Barnes, chief executive of the New Forest National Park 
Authority, said: “The purchase of Rockford Farm has been a key stepping 
stone in bringing together all of the stakeholders to discuss and agree 
a shared strategy for future support for commoning.

“If commoning is to continue, it is essential that joint partnership 
schemes develop and grow in strength.”

Richard Manley, chairman of the New Forest Trust, said: “The trust was 
created for exactly this kind of situation and is delighted to take on 
the lease and management of this land for the benefit of the Forest and 
its commoners .”