Historic sites earmarked for protection
Twenty five places of special interest in Buckinghamshire have been earmarked for possibleprotection under Historic England’s national designation scheme.
The county’s Historic Environment Forum has drawn up a list of sites following confirmation from Historic England’s Designation Team that Buckinghamshire could be considered in its 2016/17 programme.
Sites include woodland and monuments in Wycombe district, Roman and medieval antiquities in Aylesbury Vale, Bronze Age and Neolithic earthworks in South Bucks district, and historic earthworks in Chiltern district.
Buckinghamshire County Council’s Historic Environment Record Officer, Julia Wise, said designation gave sites legal protection from disturbances such as plough damage to buried sites, levelling to earthworks, and damage fromnight-hawking by illegal metal detecting.
The next step is to prioritise the list and submit it to Historic England for consideration.
Warren Whyte, Cabinet Member for Planning and Environment, who chairs the Forum, said:’Our county’s history, archaeology and environmentare important as part of our heritage and provideus with asense of belonging. Only the most important sites are considered for national designation, and this shows how strong ourheritage is.’
The Historic Environment Forum is a partnership between the County Council, district councils, Milton Keynes Council, the National Trust, and Bucks Archaeological Society to look after Buckinghamshire’s historic environment needs, and to feed into regional and national policies affecting the historic environment.
Proposed sites for protection
Buckinghamshire’s long-list of sites for potential protection status:
Pullingshill Wood, Medmenham – World War 1 practice trench earthworks.
Warren Wood, Little Marlow – Medieval earthwork enclosures in woodland.
Low Grounds, Marlow – Three ring ditches with associated mortuary enclosures and Neolithic settlement on a former Thames island.
Yewden Villa, High Wycombe- Roman villa complex.
The Rye, High Wycombe- Roman villa remains.
Cadmore End Kiln, Lane End – Ruined 19th/20th century brick kiln.
Dorney Rowing Lake – Triple ring ditch under a reconstructed mound next to Eton College’s Rowing Lake.
Dorney Reach – Neolithic oval barrow.
Taplow Court – Late Bronze Age/Iron Age hill fort with high status Saxon re-occupation.
Richings Park, Iver – early 18th century parkland and gardens.
Chenies Bottom – 19th century water meadow earthworks.
Jenkins Wood, Great Missenden – Medieval earthwork in woodland.
Common Wood, Penn – Roman enclosure earthwork in woodland
Quarrendon, Aylesbury – Deserted medieval settlements, Tudor mansion and garden earthworks, deserted medieval hamlet and moat earthworks, (two sites).
Fleet Marston and Berryfields, Aylesbury- Roman roadside settlement.
Broughton Farm, Weston Turville – Medieval moat with associated ridge and furrow and house platforms.
Boarstall Duck Decoy – Duck decoy owned by the National Trust.
Boarstall Tower and village – Fortified medieval gatehouse, moat, village earthworks and pottery production. ECW siege.
Stoke Mandeville Old Church – Ruined medieval church and churchyard with earthworks nearby.
Lillingstone Lovell – Manorial earthworks in village.
Bourton Grounds, Buckingham – Romano-Celtic Temple.
Hampden Fields, Weston Turville – enclosed Roman farmstead.
Long Crendon – Iron age hill fort.
Lenborough – Medieval homesteads and associated earthworks and trackways