Bird Walk Report
0800 Saturday 15th April saw an enthusiastic group of Friends of Fox Hill members meet with Friends of the Emm Brook’s Eddie Napper for a bird/ nature walk in Fox Hill woods.
Eddie’s appreciation of the natural world stemmed from growing-up on a local farm, where a consequent daily exposure to the sights and sounds of the countryside led to an ability to recognise the calls of many different birds from within the cacophony of the early morning avian chorus (as he amply demonstrated).
So, what did we see, or rather (mostly) hear as visually, birds can be quite elusive? Claire, our resident photographer, managed some shots of the Robin, Jay, Great Tit, and Chiffchaff –
followed by a great sequence showing the distinctive forked-tail of the Red Kite, (a feature so useful to distinguish from the similarly sized Buzzard with a fan-shaped tail).
In addition, we heard Blackbird, Song Thrush, Wren, Wood Pigeon, Stock Dove, Collared Dove, Jackdaw, Magpie, Carrion Crow, Greater Spotted Woodpecker, and Blue Tit. Perhaps, rather surprisingly and possibly indicative of wider trends, there was an absence of Starling, House and Tree Sparrows, each so numerous just a few years ago.
Among the numerous flora and fungi seen, as shown below, and which included Wood Anemone and Bluebell shoots ….
Lesser Celandine
Native Garlic Mustard
Few-Flowered Garlic
Sweet Violet
Silver Leaf Fungus
Oakmoss Lichen
Common Hair Cap Moss
Cushion Moss
the standouts were the Turkey-Tail Fungus and Snakes Head Fritillary.
So, what was the abiding memory from our early (ish) walk? For me, it was Eddie’s enthusiasm, and insistence that even without any technical kit – binoculars, camera, or bird/ flora identification apps – so much can be gleaned from just being aware and absorbed fully in the sights and sounds of the woods, or indeed any natural surroundings. Over time, and at different times of the day, in different weather and in different seasons, the collective experience and growing appreciation for, and knowledge of, the surroundings will provide enormous satisfaction, and enrichment. Right, perhaps it’s time to re-read Henry David Thoreau’s Walden … “I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach…”
Grateful thanks to Eddie and to the organisers.
Graham
Conservation Report – April 2023
Sunday 16th April was a lovely morning for our conservation session in the woods. Nineteen volunteers attended and our focus was the footpath running parallel to Dorset Way. Due to the recent heavy rainfall the pathway had become quite muddy.
When the paths are flooded, walkers meander into the undergrowth to find a drier route. While this helps to keep feet dry it can also damage young plants such as bluebells or lesser celandines which grow on the margins.
The lesser celandine is a native wildflower from the buttercup family and is now flowering in the woods.
Our aim was to improve the pathway so that everyone can use it, and the undergrowth on either side is left to grow and is less trampled. We watched how the water flowed, dug additional drainage channels, cleared some of the mud and edged a section of the footpath.
This bill hook is a useful tool for splitting wood into pegs. The pegs were then used to hold the pathway edging in place. It was great to have children join in with the conservation work.
Richard from WBC Countryside Service dropped in with some left-over field maple saplings and, although it is a bit late in the season for tree planting, we gave it a try.
A lovely sight was a pair of nuthatches spotted nest building in the trees that were planted in the area where we have previously cleared the rhododendron.
Stephanie Mckay (Conservation Team)
Bird Watching Walk – Saturday 15th April 2023
All are welcome
Come and join us at 8 am
We are meeting at the Dorset Way entrance to Fox Hill woods at the end of the path opposite Heron Park.
Eddy from Friends of the Emmbrook will be leading the walk.
We are asking for a voluntary contribution of £3.00 per family.
Please be considerate if parking along Dorset Way.
For more information contact events@friendsoffoxhill.org
This activity is suitable for all ages. Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult.
Conservation Report – February 2023
Thank you to everyone who joined our working party on Sunday, 19th February. There were 21 people in attendance, which meant we were able to work on several different areas.
<<< The rhododendron was cleared once again.
Some of the brash was left at the Dorset Way entrance. The rest was used to create a dead hedge. >>>
The hedge was created to make a natural boundary between the area we have cleared and the footpath on open ground next to Fox Hill.
It will also provide a home for small insects.
<<< The chippings, made for us by WBC Countryside Service, were used to improve pathways.
More work was carried out on the maintenance of the ditches and an area by the main pathway, as it enters at the top of Dorset Way, was cleared. >>>
We now have a larger leadership team so that we can share the responsibility for organising each session. Shortly before each session, we meet on site and decide which areas we need to work on. This gives us the opportunity to consider any specific health and safety issues, and for us to ensure that we are not removing rhododendron where it might impact on existing animal homes.
The Conservation Team – Graham, Liz, Steph and Steve
AGM Meeting Minutes 2023
Thank you to all those who were able to attend our Annual General Meeting, which was held on Sunday, 22nd January 2023. Please find the link to the Minutes.
The minutes include an update on our achievements, next steps for our footpaths application, and the talk given by our guest speaker, Colin Melhuish of Holt Copse Conservation Volunteers. If there are any questions, please contact secretary@friendsoffoxhill.org.
We look forward to seeing you during the year at one of our activities in Fox Hill.
Tree Strategy Survey
Please take a look at the Wokingham Borough Council’s ‘Creating a Tree Strategy‘ consultation survey, which closes on 22nd January 2022. There is no need to read the draft strategy to take the survey.
Friends of Fox Hill would like to point out that on page 28 it offers information on which department of the Council has responsibility for different areas of woodland around the borough. Most established woods owned by the Council are managed by the Countryside Service. This is because they have specialist skills. However, Fox Hill is not mentioned under the ‘Woodlands’ section and is therefore managed by the Cleaner & Greener Team.
As a group, we believe it should be with Countryside Services as Fox Hill is mostly woodland protected by a Tree Preservation Order. We will be requesting WBC to change this. Your comments on the proposed strategy would be most welcome.
Annual Bulb Planting Event – 2022
On Sunday 23rd October, Friends of Fox Hill met in the woods to plant some native wildflower bulbs. This event was open to all, and we managed to plant about 250 bulbs and corms.
We chose native, not garden, plants and purchased them through a specialist nursery. This will help to maintain the unique nature of the woodland. Garden plants are not a good idea as they quickly take over and can spread easily.
The native bluebells, wood anemones, and celandines were planted behind the dead hedges where they will not be disturbed by walkers. The wild garlic, or ramsons, prefer a damper habitat and so they were planted closer to the stream and the decorated hornbeam tree.
We also held a “guess the acorns in a jar” competition and there were some very accurate estimations!
Stephanie Mckay – Voluntary Conservation Officer
Conservation Report October 2022
Thank you to everyone who attend our last working party on Sunday 16th October 2022. There were eleven people in attendance, and we once again made good progress in clearing rhododendron. The brash was left at the Dorset Way entrance and has now been shredded. We also cleared fallen leaves from the pathways to protect the surfaces.
Leaves and debris were also cleared from the ditches to avoid blockages. We are also making good progress heading south along the main ditch.
There was a great selection of fungi to spot (see photos below) and evidence of browsing deer on some of the tree regrowth.
Thank you to Graham for helping to set up again.
Stephanie Mckay – Voluntary Conservation Officer
Public Right of Way Update
A response has now been received from Wokingham Borough Council to the application made by Friends of Fox Hill on 31st October 2019 for a number of Public Rights of Way on Fox Hill.
The map below shows the network of paths applied for. These cross Wokingham Borough Council land as well as areas of private and unregistered land. The map also shows which paths have been accepted as Public Rights of Way (Blue), paths rejected (Red) and paths that do not require to be adopted as there is a legal assumption of permission to roam on local authority owned land (Green).
The reasons given for refusal are:
- The routes outlined in each evidence form when combined were not consistently on the same line,
- The minimum of seven users on a path was not met,
- The path did not connect to a public highway at both ends (a legal requirement),
- There is not a requirement for an order to be made on local authority land.
We have 28 days to appeal receipt of any decision, as does any affected landowner. At present Friends of Fox Hill are considering the reasons for each refusal and deciding if there are grounds for an appeal to be made on any of the failed paths.
This has taken quite a time for the decisions to be made but we applied for several Public Rights of Way and the process is quite complex. For information, the Council response consisted of a 45-page report and 25 separate appendices.
It should be said that at the same time as our application, a separate application was made on behalf of the British Horse Society for a network of Bridleways across the area and they have been provided with a decision as well.
Friends of Fox Hill would like to thank those who completed evidence forms showing more than twenty years usage which has enabled us to progress to this stage with some success.
Friends of Fox Hill will keep you updated if an appeal is to be submitted and if so, any decision made.
Tony Delliston – Vice-Chair
Fox Hill Map & Information
Friends of Fox Hill (FoFH) is often asked questions like “where is Fox Hill?”, “how can we get into the woods?” and “what land is threatened by development?”. To help, we have assembled a map of the area showing the important features.
LOCATION: The area we refer to as Fox Hill is bordered by Woosehill housing estate on the east and north, by Bearwood Road on the west and by various private properties on the south and west. It is bisected by a row of overhead electricity cables carried on pylons, referred to as the ‘pylon line’. A strip either side of this is kept clear by the electricity company. The remaining area is mostly woodland of different types (see FoFH sheet on Finding Trees). DEFRA Magic Map has designated it as ancient and semi-natural woodland.
Strictly speaking, Fox Hill is the mound in the woods to the east of the pylon line. The high point under the northern pylon is Round Hill. However, we use “Fox Hill” to refer to the whole area. Running roughly through the middle is the border between Barkham (Wokingham parish and borough ward) and Evendons (borough and town ward). This is the light green line on the map. T he relevant Town and Borough Councillors are available to respond to any issues that concern their electorate. See here for WBC and WTC councillors.
OWNERSHIP: Only the area shown in dark green is owned by Wokingham Borough Council (WBC). (This was formerly Wokingham District Council so some of the small signs in the area date back to then.) The rest of the land is in private ownership. The perimeter is mostly fenced off by all the private properties, but there is currently no fence separating the WBC land.
The WBC woodland is not an official “Country Park” managed by WBC Countryside Services (like Dinton Pastures and California). However, this department has recently started work on a management plan and is working with FoFH to gradually maintain the area. They will always arrange for dangerous trees to be dealt with so these should be reported here.
There are some small areas where ownership is uncertain, and WBC is looking into this.
ACCESS: There is currently no provision for parking anywhere. If parking on residential roads, please park considerately and in accordance with the Highway Code, ie do not stop or park opposite or within 10 metres (32 feet) of a junction. There are access points into Fox Hill from the estate at Dorset Way (north), Chaucer Way and Dorset Way (south). These access a network of informal paths through WBC’s woodland. The main ones are shown on the map but there are others. The one which runs behind the properties in Dorset Way was once properly surfaced and FoFH have been working to remove the mud and woodland debris accumulated over the years. It may become a part of the route of the Wokingham to Arborfield “Greenway”. This is still under investigation and is not imminent.
There is also access from Kent Close but, as this is into private land, it is not displayed on our map. Note that there is no access from Ruskin Way or Bearwood Road.
The other main access is from the Public Right of Way (PROW) (number WOKI FP 1 I) that runs along the southern boundary from Limmerhill Road to Highlands Avenue. This runs mostly on private land, but access is protected. Note that horse riding and motorcycles (see below) are prohibited on this narrow path. We understand that WBC is currently considering an application for bridleways and will publicise this if granted.
There are several informal paths throughout the private land that have been regularly used at least since the Woosehill estate was built. FoFH has applied for some of these to be granted PROW status. The application is still going through a legal process and, even if granted, would probably only be a small step towards ensuring continued access to the area). Meanwhile access to these is at the owner’s discretion and permission can be withdrawn at any time.
The use of the large Fox Hill Trails BMX track has been agreed by the owners. Any other track is not sanctioned. Similarly, the owners may allow motorcycles to use their land, but these must not use WBC land or the PROW for access.
PLANNING STATUS: The whole area is covered by blanket tree preservation orders (see FoFH TPO information). FoFH have permission, working through WBC Countryside Services, to remove invasive species and restore some coppices. We are also allowed to restore paths and drains. Any other activity that might remove or damage trees or tree roots is a breach of the TPOs.
FoFH was formed in 2018 when the previous owners of the majority of the non-WBC land sold it to a company now known as Pike Wood SANG Limited (PWSL). The directors include members of the family that also own A1 Group and surrounding land. We were concerned that public access, which has been assumed for decades, would be restricted.
The WBC 2018 Local Plan Update (LPU) consultation included a submission to designate this land in a category that covered a very wide variety of uses. FoFH submitted a proposal to designate the entire area as a Local Green Space (LGS). This was accepted and included in the 2020 Draft LPU. However, the plan has been recently revised and, although the LGS designation remains, it has no legal status until the LPU is ratified. LGS is a category that presumes against commercial development but, crucially, it does not guarantee public access. See Local Green Space designation.
The declared aim of PWSL is to develop a large part of their land as a Suitable Alternative Natural Greenspace (SANG). This is a category of public space intended to mitigate development elsewhere on the Thames Heath (see SANG FAQ). You will see these adjacent to many of the new developments around Wokingham. There is no development planned for this site, but PWSL could sell SANG rights to developers who have no space to create their own.
In November 2021 PWSL were granted planning application 203539 for “change of use of 14.77ha from existing private woodland to informal recreational land and associated infrastructure including pedestrian and vehicle access, car parking and footpath network and landscaping”. See this link for detailed plans. Our map only shows the boundary of the application. The area cannot be designated a SANG until there is a development associated with it and further conditions would need to be met. The applicant is under no obligation to implement the plan and no timetable has been disclosed. Permission will lapse if no development has taken place within 3 years.
Meanwhile FoFH maintains an active interest in all developments and, with our army of volunteers, works to keep the area accessible.
DISCLAIMER: Friends of Fox Hill (FoFH) publish this map and accompanying information for public benefit. The base map is the copyright of Wokingham Borough Council. All information is in the public domain. FoFH take no responsibility for the accuracy of this information and accepts no legal liability.