Landscape Character Assessment for Forest Heath

(Draft Version December 2008)

NOTE: The Forest Heath Landscape Character Assessment is currently in draft, it is based on work led by County Council Contents

Introduction - Page 2

What is Landscape Character Assessment? - Page 2

Biodiversity and LCA - Page 2

Assessment Methodology - Page 2

Outputs from the Survey - Page 3

How does LCA fit into Legislative Frameworks relating to Planning? - Page 3

How to use this document - Page 3

Character Types: Estate Sandlands - Page 4 Planned Fenland - Page 7 Settled Fenland - Page 9 Valley Fen - Page 11 Wooded Fen - Page 13 Wooded Valley Meadowlands and Fen - Page 14 Rolling Estate Chalkland - Page 16 Settled Chalkland - Page 18 Rolling Estate Sandlands - Page 20 Wooded Chalk Slopes - Page 22 Plateau Estate Farmland - Page 24 Undulating Estate Farmland - Page 26 Undulating Ancient Farmland - Page 28

Appendix 1: Landscape Character Area Level 2 Map - Page 30

1 Introduction This study is intended to form the basis of a Core Strategy policy relating to landscape in its wider sense, within the Local Development Framework. Decisions relating to development often impinge considerably upon landscape, changing and altering it. Landscape as an entity is not static but is constantly changing and developing. It is anticipated that this study will be referred to by Development Control, developers, Parish Councils, members of the public and all others responsible for, or interested in development within the District.

What is Landscape Character Assessment? Landscape Character Assessment (LCA) in its most basic form is a process of assessing the particular features (individual items such as churches) and elements (general items such as hills) within landscapes which make one landscape different from another. Landscape is a product of lots of different factors ranging from the topography (hills, valleys, fens etc), which is influenced by underlying geology, climate and soil type, through landcover (types of agriculture, whether wooded or not etc), settlement (farms, villages and towns), through to smaller elements such as the size of fields and the presence or absence of hedges right down to single features such as a church or water- tower. All of these factors cumulatively make up the feel or character of a landscape. The process of undertaking a LCA is to try to break down the overall landscape into its constituent parts, understanding the contribution of each of them to the whole effect and then be able to describe and analyse the landscape in a manner which is useful to the particular purpose set - in this case development planning.

The result is the production of a map showing areas which have distinctive, homogenous ‘character’, together with descriptions of these areas and an analysis of why they look as they do - what features or elements have contributed to making the landscape what it is.

Biodiversity and LCA Apart from simply describing landscape, other factors can be included or have influence within a LCA. In the case of an LDF, these other factors might include the biodiversity of the area. Biodiversity has a similar place within the planning regime to landscape and the two are obviously linked in terms of what they contribute to the sense of place of any area. Biodiversity in this survey is recognised through the use of landcover and soil type/geological data, and it is acknowledged that the survey will support and mesh with the Suffolk Biodiversity Action Plan and the Forest Heath Biodiversity Action Plan where appropriate.

Assessment Methodology The assessment was conducted by Suffolk County Council in a partnership with the Living Landscapes Project based at Reading University and all District and Borough Councils in Suffolk using the standard LCA methodology which has been developed by the Countryside Agency and the Living Landscapes Project. This process has been in development for over twenty years and is a robust process for undertaking such an assessment (Landscape Character Assessment Guidelines; Countryside Agency et al ., 2002).

In this instance over 300 individual landscape description units (LDU's) were identified from information on geology, soils, landform, vegetation, and settlement pattern. Field surveys have been carried out to identify the strength of character and condition of the

2 LDUs. A draft Landscape Character Map of Suffolk, that arranged these LDU's into 28 Landscape Typologies.

The preparation of the full written descriptions has refined the understanding of the landscape of Suffolk further and the revised map has 31 Landscape Typologies, 13 of which are found in Forest Heath.

Outputs from the Survey This assessment comprises a map, which shows where different overall character areas can be found (at what is termed Level 2 within the LCA Guidelines Book) and a description for each Character Area, including among other things key characteristics of the area, its general location and settlement pattern.

How does LCA fit into Legislative Frameworks relating to Planning? Landscape Character Assessment has been promoted as a tool to be used in land use planning for over ten years. The Countryside Agency has been using and developing the process for somewhat longer. In 1997 the then PPG7 contained a sentence which promoted the option for local planning authorities to incorporate an LCA within their planning documents to inform policy and decisions. This has been added to in the current PPS7 to the effect that such a study is expected. The purpose behind this gradual process has been to try to resolve the difficulties (as the Government and others perceive them) associated with ‘landscape quality’ based surveys.

Landscape quality was and still is a very important means of apportioning landscape policy. National Parks, Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and at District level, Areas of High Quality Landscape (AHQL) all rely on this form of assessment. However, it has been criticised on the basis that it is very subjective - ‘what is beauty?’ and on the basis that it does not value the wider landscape which is not beautiful. By changing the criteria to ‘character’ rather than ‘beauty’ the two problems were largely addressed. Everywhere has a character and the character assessment process works to try to remove a good deal of subjectivity. Nevertheless, relative quality is still an important; some would argue the most important factor in defining policy. Therefore, whilst it will be expected that any review of District or County level planning policy documents will be underpinned by an LCA rather than simply areas which have been designated as of higher quality and those that have not, there remains a clause which allows Councils to retain (but informed by and LCA) some form of qualitative assessment. It will be seen that the issues which surround the assessment of, and policy apportionment resulting from , considerations of landscape sensitivity mentioned above, are likely to be very similar to issues relating to relative landscape quality.

How to use this Document This document sets out to provide detailed descriptions of each of the landscape character types indicated on the map of the district which accompanies this document. The level of assessment of the landscape at Level 2 (‘County/District level’ as defined by the Countryside Agency Guidance) is intended to give a strategic view of the relative variety of landscapes to be found in the District.

3 Estate Sandlands

Key Characteristics • Flat or very gently rolling plateaux of freely-draining sandy soils, overlying drift deposits of either glacial or fluvial origin • Chalky in parts of the Breckland • Absence of watercourses • Extensive areas of heathland or acid grassland • Strongly geometric structure of fields enclosed in the 18 th & 19 th century. • Generally a landscape without ancient woodland, but there are some isolated and very significant exceptions • Widespread planting of tree belts and rectilinear plantations • Large scale commercial forestry • Characteristic ‘pine lines’ especially, but not solely, in Breckland • High incidence of relatively late, estate type, brick buildings • North-west slate roofs with white or yellow bricks. Flint is also widely used in as a walling material.

Location This is a large area of landscape found in two main areas of Suffolk, the North West and south east/along the coast. In the north east and centre of Forest Heath it is made up of the dry slopes and central plateau of the Breckland, extending from and eastward on both sides of the to and , and northward to Brandon and along the Little Ouse valley to .

Geology, landform and soils All the parts of this landscape type consist of flat or very gently rolling plateaux of freely draining sandy soils, overlying drift deposits of either glacial or fluvial origin, sometimes chalky in parts of the Breckland, but usually acid and sandy.

Landholding and enclosure pattern The dry mineral soils of this landscape and the general absence of watercourses gave rise to extensive areas of heathland or acid grassland that, historically, were used either for sheep grazing or for rabbit warrens, the sheep-grazed heaths were often referred to as ‘sheepwalks’. The earliest warrens were established on the poorest soils and were owned by ecclesiastical landlords: the bishops of Ely had a warren at Brandon by 1252; the prior and convent of Ely received a specific grant of a warren at in 1300, but had had ‘free-warren’ hunting rights since 1251; and Bury abbey had a warren at Mildenhall by 1328. Many of the warrens and heaths were enclosed in the period of agricultural improvement in the 18 th and 19 th centuries and now survive mainly as place names, e.g. High Warren and Weather Heath. The enclosed land, like that of the Planned Fenlands, has the strongly geometric structure that results from the map- based work of surveyors.

In the early seventeenth century the open areas around Thetford (Thetford Chase) became an important royal hunting ground, used by both King James and King Charles. In 1636 a warrant was issued for the preservation of the king’s game ‘of hare, partridge and other wild fowl’ in a 12-mile radius of Thetford.

4 Low land prices and a relatively sparse population gave good opportunities for the formation of parks and an abundance of game was a strong added attraction. Medieval and Tudor deer parks existed at Staverton in Eyke/Wantesden, Blythburgh and Henham (outside of the District) and one was established around Hengrave Hall c1588 and another at Euston Hall in the 1660s. But the great growth of parks came in the 18 th century and was linked to the rise in popularity of game shooting amongst the gentry, with the houses often being described as ‘shooting boxes’. Parks appeared at , and Brandon.

The apogee of this type of estate was Elveden, which in the late 19 th and early 20 th centuries became nationally-famous for its shooting and often attracted royalty.

Large estates are still a feature of this area, particularly in Breckland, and the Elveden Estate is said to be the largest in lowland . Rabbit, pheasant and partridge shooting is still an important part of the estate economies. The low value of some of these estates after the First World War, again particularly in Breckland, led them to be bought-up by the newly-established Forestry Commission for forestry plantations.

The arable lands were mainly organised as common, open, fields, with some of the more marginal areas only being used intermittently for crops – these occasionally cultivated areas were called ‘brecks’, hence the district’s name, Breckland. The common fields were enclosed in the late 18 th and early 19 th centuries, frequently through the mechanism parliamentary acts (starting with in 1772). Though in areas where major landlords had almost total control (as on the Euston and Hengrave estates) enclosure was able to take place without the need for acts.

Where there was late enclosure, the field pattern is one of straight-sided, relatively large geometric units. Even where there is map evidence for old enclosures, the boundaries have frequently been realigned to make more regular shapes. In part this is because field boundaries on these sandy soils were less substantial than those on the clayland and short-lived shrubby species such as gorse are recorded as being used in hedges.

In the late 20 th century the widespread introduction of irrigation has changed the agricultural potential of this land and irrigated vegetable crops are now a major element here. The noise of water spraying from irrigation equipment, sometimes of giant proportions, is now often a relatively quiet but relentless constant in this landscape.

Settlement The scarcity of water in these landscapes meant that they were not favoured for settlement and, in the past, they were managed as marginal areas to settlements in the adjacent and better-watered valleys. Its special character led to its use as a burial ground in the Bronze Age and burial mounds feature in places like . It was similarly used in the Anglo-Saxon period.

Historically, this was an area of sparse settlement, consisting mainly of isolated hunting or warren lodges and post-enclosure farmsteads. In the 20 th century the sparseness of settlement and the flat nature of the land led to it being used for a number of Second World War airfields: at places like Lakenheath and Cavenham. Of these, Lakenheath has grown into a major American airforce base and Cavenham has been swallowed up by quarrying. Some specialised settlements or activities have also been accommodated, in the Breckland, a former plantation has become the Elveden Forest Holiday Village

5 (Centre Parcs) and the Forestry Commission has its High Lodge Centre in the forested heart of a former rabbit warren.

There is a high incidence of relatively late brick buildings, however in the north-west of Suffolk the bricks are often white or yellow rather than the red of the south-east. Flint is also widely used in Breckland as a walling material, sometimes with an exterior ‘flushwork’ finish of black knapped flints. Pan-tiled roofs, often black-glazed, are a strong feature of the coastal zone, while 19 th century slate roofs figure strongly in Breckland.

Communication lines figure strongly in this landscape type and the A11 trunk road cuts across the Breckland area.

Trees and woodland cover This is generally a landscape without ancient woodland, but there are some isolated and very significant exceptions. In the north-west of Suffolk there is Fakenham Wood, and in the southeast, the magnificent and ancient pollarded oaks and holly trees of Staverton Park and the remnants of Sudbourne Great Wood (formerly Scutgrove wood ). All three had hunting usage and Fakenham Wood may have well have been the location of 16 wild ‘woodland horses’ recorded at Fakenham in 1086.

The area also had 'fields with trees', where the trees are widely spaced, as opposed to the closely grown trees of true woodland, as can still be see at Brakey Pin and Oak Pin in Risby on the Forest Heath/St. Edmundsbury border. The creation of farmland out of the former heaths in the 18 th and 19 th centuries resulted in the widespread planting of tree belts and rectilinear plantations. These are commonly of pines in the north-east (originally Scots, but now mainly Corsican) but of mixed character in the south-east, with chestnut featuring strongly in place like Kesgrave.

The characteristic ‘pine lines’ of Breckland originated as managed hedges, many of which have now grown out into lines of very striking twisted trees.

A profound change to the character of the area came with the establishment of the Forestry Commission’s coniferous forests (Thetford Forest and King’s Forest) from the 1920s onwards. Some smaller areas of coniferous plantations had been trialled in the 19 th century, but now large tracts of previously very open heathland or farmland became dense woodland. Although there has been a very strong visual change, the plantations have largely been within pre-existing land boundaries, preserving much of the form of the highly geometric late-enclosure landscape.

Visual experience Despite the presence of so much forestry, the views in this landscape are often long and there can be powerful feelings of isolation. The ‘planned’ nature of the landscape over such a large area does, however, mean that there is little variation in the views.

Condition The landscape remains strongly rural, except in the environs of and Thetford, but is dominated by high-tech modern farming and forestry. The occasional new intrusion, such as the Elveden Forest Holiday Village (Centre Parcs), has made little impact as it is buried in the forest.

6 Planned Fenland

Key Characteristics • Flat plain at or below sea level • Deep peat soil that is desiccating and shrinking • Rectilinear dyke pattern of large scale fields • Intensive vegetable production • Individual farmsteads set within their own land • Brick and tile farmhouses and buildings • Small plantations adjacent to farmsteads • Some remnants of large poplar plantations • Large scale management for wildlife conservation

Location This landscape is found in the north-west tip of the District: the Burnt Fen area of Mildenhall to the north of Baldwin’s Lode, Sedge Fen in Lakenheath, and Brandon, Joist and New Fen north of the Crooked Dyke.

Geology, landform and soils This is a flat peaty plain lying at or below sea level with only the roads rising as causeways a metre or two above it. It has deep peat soils with desiccating upper layers. Deposits of white shell-marl, up to a metre thick, occur in places, notably in Sedge Fen where they indicate the former extent of a large lake, possibly the second largest in England, which had disappeared by the 17 th century. It has been named ‘Redmere’, though its original name is not certain.

Landholding and enclosure pattern This area formed a part of the ‘wild fen’ that was drained in a series of campaigns funded by investors called ‘adventurers’, led by the Earl of Bedford, from 1631 onwards – hence the terms Bedford Level and Adventurers’ Lands. Blocks of land were allotted to the investors and these formed straight-sided blocks, often linear, that were aligned on the main drainage dykes. The fields within these allotments are also straight sided and tend to be larger than those in the Settled Fenlands to the south. Improved drainage works, following an Act of 1759, led to the establishment of farmsteads within the allotments.

Named as the ‘First District’ in 1759, the area to the north of Baldwin’s Lode was renamed Burnt Fen in 1843. This name appears to have arisen from the practice of 'paring and burning' whereby 'great tufts of rushes etc', were cut, dried, burnt and the ashes spread. This process not only cleared the land of rough vegetation, but the ashes also served to fertilise it.

Settlement Mainly individual farms set within their own lands, often set back from the main roads. Very few clusters of settlement, for instance between Kenny Hill and Brandon Bank, a straight-line distance of 6½ miles, there are only intermittent farmsteads. An exception is the linear hamlet of Sedge Fen near Lakenheath that grew up around 1910 following the establishment of the former Chivers chicory and herb factory (there was later another small chicory factory at Lakenheath Station). The houses are mostly 19th-century brick

7 constructions with slate roofs and there is little in the way of vernacular farm buildings, corrugated iron tends to dominate.

Woodland cover In the 20 th century extensive areas in the north of Lakenheath (Joist Fen and New Fen) were planted with poplars for the match-stick industry. The decline in that industry has led to the removal of many of these plantations, including those in Joist Fen, which has been re-flooded and turned into a wildlife reserve. There are some linear tree belts on the banks surrounding Stallode Wash in Lakenheath and within the wash area itself. Otherwise, the tree cover is restricted to occasional groups of trees adjacent to farmsteads.

Visual experience This is a vast open landscape in which there is a feeling of extreme exposure and great distance. Distances are underlined by the straight roads and dykes stretching off to the horizon.

Condition Generally maintaining its character with little significant change taking place except for the loss of poplars and the creation of new wetland areas in New Fen and Joist Fen by the RSPB.

8 Settled Fenland

Key Characteristics • Flat landscape of peaty soils • Land at sea level, but small sandy islands and ridges up to 4m • Piecemeal enclosure common fen • Small, narrow fields that are divided by straight, water-filled drains • Small poplar plantations and occasional Scots pine belts • Smaller scale farming than in the Planned Fenlands • Comprehensively settled with farmsteads often forming clusters

Location This landscape type is found in the north-west of Forest Heath, extending northwards from the Beck Row area of Mildenhall to Kenny Hill in the north-west at Wangford fen and westward to the River Lark and beyond the county boundary. It also occurs at extreme northern end of .

Geology, landform and soils The area has an underlying micro-topography of sandy hummocks and peat-filled hollows, covered by a desiccating surface peat layer that gives the area the appearance of a flat, black, plain. Most of the land is at sea level, but small sandy islands and ridges may rise to about 4m above sea level. It has black peaty soils, varying from very sandy where underlying sand ridges are close to the surface to almost pure peat over the deeper hollows.

Landholding and enclosure pattern A large part of the area is taken up by Mildenhall Fen, formerly Mildenhall Common Fen. This was originally an extensive and open fen common belonging to the inhabitants of Mildenhall and had experienced some piece-meal enclosure before the implementation of a Drainage Act of 1759. The area was delimited by the ‘uplands’ or ‘hards’ (i.e. the dry land) of Mildenhall to the south and east, and an old sinuous watercourse called Baldwin’s Lode to the north. A flood-control bank, called the Cross Bank, was added, after 1759, on the north side of this drain. The drainage works have resulted in a landscape of relatively small, narrow fields that are divided by straight, water-filled drains, with long axes that lie mainly at right angles to the former cattle drove roads that radiate out from the Mildenhall hards. The land was allotted in relatively small parcels, so that there are frequent changes of ownership across small groups of fields. Agriculture is (and was) more varied here than in the ‘planned fenlands’ to the north of Baldwin’s Lode, with the remnants of small holding livestock production and the glasshouse production of salad crops, as well as a scattering of old orchards. A lot of the land in this area is still rented from the County Council and this has maintained the pattern of small land holdings.

The Cut-Off Channel is a large drain that forms a prominent landscape feature on the eastern edge of this area. Constructed 1960-4, it runs some 27 miles from the River Lark at north to Denver. It intercepts the waters of the Lark, Little Ouse and Wissey and carries them directly to the complex of sluices at Denver.

9 Settlement There are no real villages in this landscape rather, there are a series of small hamlets or clusters of farms such as Kenny Hill. Settlement clusters are usually linked to the settled chalkland landscape of the larger of the fen ‘islands’, such as Undley, and Wilde Street on the edge of Littley Field – their former island status being reflected by names ending in ‘(e)y, from Old English e.g. ‘an island’. There are also intermittent strings of farmsteads along the drove roads, mainly in the fen ‘skirtlands’ around the edges of the permanent hards.

Woodland cover Small plantations of poplar and conifer belts occur sporadically in the western part of this area, but are more common in the east, with blocks of considerable size on the eastern margin at Wilde Street and along the Cut-Off Channel.

Visual experience The pattern of smallish fields and numerous farmsteads give a more ‘lived in’ feel to this landscape, which contrasts with the larger-scale fields and more isolated farmsteads of the planned fenlands to north, although the difference may not be obvious unless both landscapes are visited.

Condition The array of small farms, with business parks and a golf course mixed in, as well as caravan sites, gives the droves and hamlets a busy air, which contrasts with the openness and isolation of the deeper fen areas. There are also greater development pressures and settlement expansion breaking down the pattern of plotlands and backyard farming.

10 Valley Fen

Key Characteristics • Flat, narrow, river valley bottoms • Deep peat or mixtures of peat and sandy deposits • Ancient meres within the valley bottoms & important fen sites • Small grassland fields, bounded by dykes running at right angles to the main river • Sparse scattering of small alder carr & plantation woodlands • Part of a wider estate type landscape • Largely unsettled, except for the occasional farmstead • Drier fields turned over to the production of arable crops • Cattle grazed now often peripheral to active agriculture • Loss to scrub encroachment, tree planting and horse paddocks

Location This Landscape type occurs in two main areas of Suffolk: • In the north-west in the valleys of the River Lark (from Mildenhall upstream to ) and of The Black Bourn (from Euston to Pakenham and Norton) • In the north-east in the east-flowing valleys of the Hundred River (Rushmere to Ellough), the Wang (Wolsey Bridge to Uggeshall), the Blyth (Bulcamp to Heveningham and along a tributary to Bramfield), and the River or Yox ( to Sibton).

Geology, landform and soils These landscapes comprise flat, narrow, river valley bottoms. In the west, deep peat is limited to parts of the Lark, with mixtures of peat and sandy deposits elsewhere, occasionally there are ancient meres within the valley bottoms.

Landholding and enclosure pattern The common pattern of land division in this landscape is into small grassland fields, bounded by dykes running at right angles to the main river. This valley grassland usually forms part of a larger agricultural holding, in which it is commonly marginal to the farming business. In many cases the small fields have been turned over to the production of arable crops, in places where the land is quite dry. In a lot of cases, such as at Norton on the Black Bourne, efforts at arable production have been replaced by set-aside or agri-environment-scheme grassland.

These valleys are all found in a wider estate type landscape; therefore they often incorporate parts of parklands. The most notable examples of this are at Heveningham, where the large lakes designed by Capability Brown in the 1780s were completed in the 1990s, at Ampton/, where Humphry Repton designed a long lake to serve two parks and at where he again designed a long lake, both in the 1790s. Parklands are also found at Pakenham, Euston, Stowlangtoft and Sibton.

Settlement Settlements adjacent to this landscape tend to reflect the surrounding estate character. However the valley floors themselves are largely unsettled, except for the occasional farmstead.

11

Trees and woodland cover There is some tree cover present here in the form of alder carrs and plantation woodlands, however trees and woodland do not dominate the landscape to the same extent as in the valleys of the Waveney and the Little Ouse. The important fen sites remaining in this landscape are at Pakenham and in the west of the county.

Visual experience This landscape is noticeably contained by the surrounding higher land there are only occasional exceptions to this, such as at Wenhaston and Blyford on the Blyth. Here this landscape can give the same sense of quite isolation that is experienced on the floor of the Waveney valley. However, landscape change and human activity tend to intrude more often, with arable land at Sibton, parklands, as at Heveningham, or pony paddocks at Tostock.

Condition Some parts of this landscape are still in fine condition having a rural feel and maintain the traditional management of cattle grazing, this pattern is shown at its best at Blyford. There is though a lot of neglect and poor management in these landscapes, the small and difficult to access fields are often peripheral to any form of active agriculture. These difficult fields are being lost to scrub encroachment, tree planting and horse paddocks.

12 Wooded Fen

Key Characteristics • Flat valley bottom landscape of peaty soils • Network of drainage ditches • Important nature conservation sites • Small areas of alder carr • Cattle grazed grassland • Generally unsettled

Location This landscape character type is found in one area within Forest Heath: • Hurst Fen area on the north-east side of Mildenhall.

Geology, landform and soils The area has sandy soils with variable peat deposits.

Landholding and enclosure pattern The enclosure pattern, where one is present, consists mainly of straight drainage ditches, indicative of 18 th or 19 th century enclosure and drainage. The area around Hurst Fen is bounded on the east by the Cut-Off Channel – constructed 1960-4, it runs some 27 miles from the River Lark at Barton Mills north to Denver. It intercepts the waters of the Lark, Little Ouse and Wissey and carries them directly to the complex of sluices at Denver.

Settlement In the Mildenhall area there are some farmsteads on locally higher pieces of ground – this continues a long tradition, for an important Neolithic settlement was excavated in the 1950s in part of Hurst Fen. However the rest of the area remains generally unsettled.

Trees and woodland cover The Hurst Fen area of Mildenhall has been partly reclaimed as arable farmland and is surrounded by extensive plantations.

Visual experience Principally this is an open flat open wooded landscape framed by woodland on the rising ground around. The presence of grazing animals makes a contribution to the landscape.

Condition The area is dominated by forestry and affected by the Cut-off Channel and a trunk road, with some parts maintained for conservation purposes.

13 Wooded Valley Meadowlands and Fen

Key Characteristics • Flat valley bottom • Extensive peat deposits • Cattle grazed pasture • Network of drainage ditches • Areas of unenclosed “wild” fenland • Widespread plantation and carr woodland • Important sites for nature conservation • Localised settlement on the valley floor “islands” • Sense of quiet and rural isolation in many places

Location This landscape type is only found in two interlinked river valleys on the northern boundary of the county:

• The valley of the Waveney westwards from the Coastal Levels at Barnby, taking in part of Holborn Marsh in Barnby and Carlton Colville, Barnby Broad and Old Broad, Benstead Marshes in Mettingham, Shipmeadow Marshes, Barsham Marshes, Beccles Marshes and Common, Outney Common and Stow Fen in Bungay, Limbourne Common and Mendham Marshes, part of Stuston Common and ending in Redgrave and Lopham Fen; together with the valleys of some of the Waveney’s tributaries, notably the River Dove southward to Eye (its name, in Old English, means ‘an island;’ and this landscape type does almost surround the town) and Wetheringsett.

• The Little Ouse from its source in Redgrave and Lopham Fen westward to its junction with the Settled Fenland landscape at Brandon, taking in Fen, Fen, Raydon Common in Hopton and Hopton Common, and including some tributary valleys such as that at Botesdale with Hopton and Weston Fens and the serpentine lake of Redgrave Park.

Geology, soils and landform The Little Ouse and Waveney valleys are both part of the same topographical formation, but with a drainage flow which changes from east (the Waveney) to west (the Little Ouse) at Redgrave and Lopham Fen. The whole valley system was formed by glacial outwash at the end of the great Anglian Glaciation, but parts of it, particularly of the Waveney, seem to overlie deposits associated with a pre-Anglian river known to geologists as the Bytham River.

The flat valley bottom has had a history of poor drainage leading to the deposition of extensive peat deposits. In the Waveney valley these deep bands of river valley peat are generally narrow from Redgrave eastward to Mendham, but broaden out from there to Barnby. In the Little Ouse valley peat is still present but there is a great deal more sand and the soil is similar to that of much of the Settled Fenland landscape. On the side valleys of the Waveney, such as the Dove, waterlogged clays often replace peat deposits.

14 In places the flat valley floors are flanked by quite high and steep slopes, giving an enclosed feeling that is rare in the generally very open East Anglian landscape.

Landholding and enclosure pattern The dominant use of these damp valley floor landscapes was as animal pastures, with the more intractable areas left as fens or marshes, or utilised as wet woodland or alder carrs. The landscape is frequently one of sinuous riverside and higher land boundaries, with shorter lengths of straight drains at right angles to the rivers or creeks. In places, such as at Hopton Common, large riverside commons have been enclosed and subdivided into geometric units. Improvements in drainage techniques and economic incentives led many of the pastures to be converted to arable in the 20 th century, but some have been reverted using the agri-environment schemes of the late 20 th century. Where wet conditions prevail, pastures have frequently been converted to or allowed to be colonised by woodland. There are still some important semi-wild fens in this landscape – from the best known at Redgrave/Lopham and Thelnetham to the smaller ones such as The Marsh at Thrandeston and Thorndon Fen, (Ganderwick)

Settlement The pastures of the valley largely belong to settlements that are situated on the higher and dryer land surrounding the valley floors. There are, however, a few examples of substantial farmsteads of medieval origin that have colonised locally higher ‘islands’ or fringes within the valleys, as at Santon House (and church) and Blo’ Norton Hall on the Little Ouse.

Woodland cover The peaty or wet sandy soils of this landscape mean that the cover of trees and wet woodland in these valleys is an important component of the landscape. Small poplar plantations and areas of naturally regenerating alder carr are common throughout this landscape. From Thetford westward, the valley runs through 20 th century pine plantations.

Visual experience Despite the fact the edges of this landscape often have main road or urban fringe, such as at Beccles, overall the impression is of a quiet hidden landscape usually undisturbed by the human activity taking place to the north and the south.

Condition This landscape is generally in good condition, with a lot of conservation effort being placed on the key fen sites. However the visual condition is threatened in some places by the conversion of traditional grazing into pony paddocks with their associated field shelters and fencing tape, rather than the more robust and discreet methods used for cattle. There has also been some mineral extraction in some of the tributary valleys of the Little Ouse, such as at Hinderclay (outside of Forest Heath).

15 Rolling Estate Chalkland

Key Characteristics • Gently rolling landscape of chalky free draining loam. • Dominated by large scale arable production • "Studscape" of small paddocks and shelterbelts • Large uniform fields enclosed by low hawthorn hedges • Shelter belt planting, often ornamental species • A "well kept" and tidy landscape • Open views • Clustered villages with flint and thatch vernacular houses • Suburbanisation of housing design

Location This landscape type is found on the western fringe of Forest Heath, running from the county boundary in the west around Newmarket and though Snailwell, Chippenham and Freckenham to Barton Mills on the south side of the River Lark.

Geology landform and soils This is an open flat, or very gently rolling landscape with free-draining mineral soils and deep loams.

Trees and woodland cover There is a fragmented woodland cover of small plantations and belts made up species such as oak, scots pine and willow. The deep free-draining soils found here mean that crop production is focussed on field vegetables such as carrots & onions and these are supported with irrigation. This type of cropping has a significant visual impact on the landscape and is in clear contrast to the wooded chalk slopes to the south with their thinner soils on which cereals predominate.

The hedgerow cover is sparse and uniform, with straight rows of hawthorn or narrow belts of trees dividing large fields. In the places where stud farms are frequent, such as south of Newmarket, the enclosures are smaller and bounded by a comprehensive network of shelterbelts, and the species choice can be ornamental.

Landholding and enclosure pattern The Newmarket Heath area to the west of the town was formerly a more open area, but is now occupied by a world-famous racecourse and racehorse studs with rectangular paddocks and linear plantations. Elsewhere, planned enclosure in the 18 th and 19 th centuries has replaced the extensive areas of common fields that dominated the landscape in the 17 th century, with geometric late-enclosure fields. Where land is devoted to horse racing, as in Exning, the enclosure pattern is a small network of paddocks divided up by post and rail fencing and narrow shelterbelts.

Settlement The villages are tight clusters in the river valleys, the traditional houses and other buildings are often flint-walled and thatched, but there is a strong presence of new large "prestige" homes that are suburbanising the feel of many villages.

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Visual experience The feel of this landscape is very much one of open, unenclosed space with long views, this is underlined by the straight roads and regimented pattern of belts and hedges. Although where the "studscape" is at its most intense views can be belts and woodland planting.

Condition This is a largely a tidy and well-kept landscape that has been maintained by the income from farming the good soil and the horse racing industry. However, the expansion and suburbanisation of villages is eroding the local character.

17 Settled Chalkland

Key Characteristics • Chalk and gravel outcrops on the fen edge • Small farms and small holdings • Regular pattern of fields consistent with late enclosure • Tree belts of poplar and pine • Scattered small plantations • Comprehensively settled with small hamlets • Considerable recent settlement expansion • Airbase dominant in the landscape

Location This is a landscape found between the landscape types Estate Sandlands and Settled Fenland. It is in three parts in the District; Mildenhall, and Wilde Street, Undley Hards and Lakenheath.

Geology, Landform and Soils The landscape consists of the chalk and gravel outcrops of Mildenhall and Lakenheath and a series of low chalk “islands” between them surrounded by fenland. Unlike the surrounding peat and alluvial fen soils the land is free draining.

Trees and Woodland Cover There is little in the way of woodland in this landscape except for a scattering tree belts and plantations. The area also includes Aspal Close, an ancient wood pasture that was once the small park or ‘home close’ of the small manor of Aspal (named after Sir Robert de Aspal, its early-14th-century owner). Aspal Hall and most of its medieval moat has been lost to the expansion of Beck Row, which now surrounds the Close. On the southern side, another former manor, Wamil Hall, stands more isolated in the middle of its farmland. Its name, from Old English twaem hyllum 'two hills', probably commemorates some former burial mounds on the plateau.

Landholding and Enclosure Pattern In the south there is a small chalk plateau that was formerly occupied by the common fields of Mildenhall, before their enclosure in the 19 th century. On the west and north sides there were and still are, a string of fen-edge hamlets or ‘rows’– West Row, Beck Row, Holywell Row – each formerly had numerous small or linear greens that now only survive as place-names (e.g. Thistley Green and Holmsey Green). Wilde Street on the edge of Littley Field – their former island status being reflected by names ending in ‘(e)y, from Old English e.g. ‘an island’

Undley is a largish island of chalk in this fen landscape, with Undley Hall in the centre and the former Undley Hards to the north and Undley Common to the south. Turf Fen is a tongue of settled fenland, (formerly Lakenheath Common), that separates Undley from the hards of Lakenheath. Lakenheath itself is on the lower slopes of the chalky and sandy Maids Cross Hill.

Mildenhall Airfield, first opened in 1934, covers over 420 ha of this ancient farmland and dominates the northern half of the plateau. The main runway runs parallel to the former Old Way , a large cattle droveway that formerly led from the town of Mildenhall out

18 though its fields to the fen edge. Outside the airbase the farmland now consists of straight-sided fields resulting from late enclosure, divided by minimal or no hedges. Some small holding plot lands and market gardens are still apparent such as those at Thistley Green.

In all these areas, although the field pattern, with its organised and systematic structure is similar to the surrounding fens, the chalky soil means that the network of drainage ditches is absent.

Settlement Compared with the estate sandlands to the east and the settled and planned fenlands to the west this landscape is much more comprehensively settled with small farms, and hamlets form multiple nuclei. This pattern has come about because the landscape was very attractive to early settlement, having better soils, between the dry sandy soils to the east and the fenland to the west.

Many of these small settlements have formed the basis for later expansion, driven, in large part, by the economic impetus created by the presence of the airbases. The result has been growth in the number of dwellings, especially bungalows.

Visual Experience On the Mildenhall plateau the overall feel is of an open plain dominated by the airfield with a few remnant and degraded rural features around it. However further away especially at Wilde Street and Undley there are long but well treed views, similar to those on the fenlands, but with a much busier and more populated feel.

Condition Most of the area, especially the hamlets have been reshaped by the physical and economic presence of the airbase. However, the settled and tree covered landscape still has pockets smaller scale farming and quiet countryside along isolated tree lined droves.

19 Rolling Estate Sandlands

Key Characteristics • Sloping or rolling river terraces and coastal slopes • Sandy and free draining soils with areas of heathland • Late enclosure with a pattern of tree belts and straight hedges • Parklands • A focus of settlement in the Estate Sandlands landscape • Lark valley buildings are frequently of brick or flint with tiled or slate roofs • Tree belts and plantations throughout • Occasional and significant semi natural woodlands and ribbons of wet woodland • Complex and intimate landscape on valley sides

Location Within Forest Heath this character area type occurs in one area: On the south side of the Lark valley from Tuddenham eastward to Hengrave.

Geology, Landform and Soils In the Lark valley this landscape is found on the flat or gently rolling river terrace where deep, free-draining, sandy soils of the Newport series overlie sandy glacial deposits on top of chalk.

Trees and Woodland Cover Woodland in the form of belts, coverts and plantations is a consistent feature throughout these landscapes and is a reflection of its late enclosure character, but there are also occasional semi-natural oak woodlands on some of the slopes. There are even ribbons of wet woodland along some of the small tributaries, such as ‘The Wilderness’ along the Falkenham Brook.

Landholding and Enclosure Pattern In the Lark valley the dryness of the soils has limited their land-use and there were extensive heaths- Tuddenham Heath, Cavenham Heath, Mill Heath, Home Heath and Clamp Heath. Of these, Cavenham Heath is the largest survivor and is now a nature reserve. Part of the heathland was used in World War II for Tuddenham Airfield and is now largely a gravel quarry. The field pattern here is predominantly one of late enclosure with straight hedges and tree belts.

In most places the estate character of the settlement and enclosure is not particularly marked, showing up sometimes as higher densities of timber trees in the hedges or in locally similar groups of buildings

Settlement Being elevated land beside water courses, these landscapes were utilised for settlement from an early date. On the river terrace at there are the buried remains of major Neolithic ritual monuments that now only show as crop marks- a large causewayed enclosure, a long cursus and various rings. Bronze Age building remains have been found at Cavenham, and at Wenhaston in the Blyth valley there is the site of a small Roman town. Medieval churches with clusters of houses around them line the sides of the valleys at intervals of about 1.5 to 2 miles, with some additional isolated farmsteads in between.

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At Hengrave a park was established partly over former common field strips in 1587 to enhance the setting of the magnificent early Tudor mansion beside the medieval church. The 18 th Century park on the other side of the valley at has now disappeared and much of the land has been quarried for sand and gravel.

In the Lark valley buildings are frequently of brick or flint with tiled or slate roofs and have a 19 th Century air of symmetry and planning, contrasting with the more vernacular timber-framed buildings of the clayland areas to the south. The Tudor white bricks of Hengrave Hall are an early precursor of the strong 19 th Century fashion for white bricks, with production sites in the valley at and Culford.

Visual Experience In contrast to the surrounding ‘uplands’ of the Estate Sandlands, these landscapes are usually more complex and intimate, the managed, open, estate feel being replaced by a pattern of small streams and smaller fields. The views are shorter and more confined and settlement is more evident so the countryside feels less empty.

Condition Many of these valley side landscapes are under considerable development pressure because there are concentrations of settlement and land use change. However there are excellent areas of semi-natural landscapes and intact landscapes in many places.

21 Wooded Chalk Slopes

Key Characteristics • Rolling valleys • Shallow free draining chalk soils • Scattered plantation woodlands • Fringed with ancient woodland • Planned rectilinear field patterns • Hawthorn hedges with few trees • Compact villages and a scattering of farms • Flint and thatch vernacular buildings • Suburbanisation of housing design

Location This landscape is found on three valleys in the west of the county. The first is the valley of the river Kennet between Moulton and Kirtling. The other two areas are alongside small tributaries of the Lark between Denham and Kentford and Hargrave and Barrow heath. The first two fall within Forest Heath, whilst the third valley is partly in Forest Heath and partly in St. Edmundsbury.

Geology landform and soils The underlying geology of chalk has a profound influence on the character of this landscape. It has created a shallow free draining mineral soil on land that is sloping sometimes steeply. The soil type and geology has made the smaller streams in a valley bottoms weak features with little in the way of a floodplain and some are entirely seasonal, existing only as winterbournes.

Trees and woodland cover There is a strong planned character to this landscape with some large plantation woodlands and many coverts and belts. Beech is prominent component of the woodland cover. However, ancient woodlands do fringe these landscapes, sites such as Hearse Wilsummer and Leipsic woods frame the upper slopes of the valleys.

Landholding and enclosure pattern The pattern of fields is generally large and rectilinear, created in a process of planned enclosures during the 18 th century. The hedges are therefore composed of hawthorn, with occasional ash trees, and are managed tightly and kept short. This regular pattern of well draining soils has been very amenable to the amalgamation of fields and further tidying up of boundaries in the period after WWII. The effect of this has been to create an open and somewhat uniform landscape in many places.

Settlement The villages, such a Moulton and , are quite small and tightly clustered and there is also a scattering of small farms in the Kennet valley, the other two smaller valleys have only a scattering of farmsteads and small hamlets such as Birds End. Flint and thatch is wildly used for vernacular houses, especially in the northern part of this area.

Visual experience The combination of gently rolling chalk valleys with their planned layout and scattering of small woodlands can feel rather unexpected in Suffolk. It is one of the few occasions in

22 the county when solid geology makes a really significant contribution to landscape. This is much more apparent here than on the Estate Chalklands to the north where the contribution of landform is partially obscured by the very strong estate character.

Condition This landscape is in generally reasonable condition. However the historic pattern has been degraded by agricultural improvement. The development in the villages has created a rather suburban feeling.

23 Plateau Estate Farmland

Key Characteristics • Flat landscape of light loams and sandy soils • Large scale rectilinear field pattern • Network of tree belts and coverts • Large areas of enclosed former heathland • 18 th , 19 th & 20 th C Landscape Parks • Clustered villages with a scattering of farmsteads around them • Former airfield sites • Vernacular architecture is often late estate type of brick and tile

Location This landscape character type is only found in one area in Forest Heath, this in a linear series of clusters that follow the A14 road from in the west, past Bury St Edmunds to Thurston in the east, and up along the A143 to in the north. This forms a transitional zone between the claylands of central Suffolk and the Breckland sands of the north-west.

Geology, Landform and Soils The landform is a gently rolling or flat plateau formed from a mixture of glacial deposits. These chalky clay tills and sandy drift deposits have given rise to mainly free-draining loam and mineral soils.

Trees and Woodland Cover This is an area of scattered woodland cover, mostly in the form of rectangular plantations and coverts except in the areas around Barrow, Pakenham and Rougham (outside of Forest Heath) where the cover is more extensive. Hedges are mixed although often dominated by unmanaged elm typical of these light soils, especially on the Felixstowe peninsula.

Landholding and Enclosure Pattern Traditionally, the area around Bury St Edmunds (including parts of the east of Forest Heath) was one of large, open, common fields and a moderate amount of common-field arable was still surviving here in the 18 th and early 19 th centuries, when it was enclosed through Parliamentary Acts. The part to the east of Bury St Edmunds also contained some large heaths and commons (Blackthorpe Heath, Conyers Green, Pakenham Heath, Common, Heath, Thurston Heath etc) that were mainly used for sheep grazing, but were enclosed around the same time. The late enclosure has resulted in a rather open landscape with regularly shaped field bounded by straight hedge lines.

Today the agriculture is largely arable with grassland confined to parklands and occasional paddocks. Arable production is a mixture of combinable crops (with sugar beet around Bury St Edmunds) and a strong element of vegetable production and outdoor pigs in both the eastern and western parts of this landscape type. The presence of pig production can have a profound visual impact in some places such as along the A14 at Saxham.

24 Trunk roads are a prominent feature of this landscape with the A14 running through both of the main areas. Where the regularity of parliamentary enclosure is at its strongest, such as at Ixworth and Risby, even the minor roads are tracks are very regular and straight.

Settlement There are some substantial villages in all parts of this landscape type: Gazeley, Barrow, Risby, , Thurston and Ixworth in the west of Suffolk; Bucklesham, Nacton, Kirton, Trimley St Martin and St Mary and Stutton in the east. But there are also substantial numbers of dispersed farmsteads and small hamlets as well. A great deal of the vernacular architecture is of an estate character usually from the 18 th and 19 th C of brick and tile construction.

Visual Experience The landscape often feels open and even where coverts and hedges are present; the regular arrangement of these features can often enhance the feeling of distance rather than reduce it. Only in those areas associated with parklands and their surroundings is there a more enclosed feel such as at Nacton, Stutton or Pakenham.

Condition In the eastern part of this landscape, away from the localised effects of the A14 and A12 trunk roads, this landscape is in reasonable condition. However the maintenance of hedges in good condition as well as the decline of mature hedgerow trees, as a result of Dutch elm disease is significant.

In general the picture in the west is more mixed with considerable growth of villages and the loss of orchards simplifying the landscape locally. However the overall pattern of large fields with hedges and woodland coverts remains apparent through some of the detail has been lost through 20 th century agricultural improvements and through the construction and redevelopment of airfields at Rougham, Ipswich and Bentwaters.

25 Undulating Estate Farmland

Key Characteristics • Undulating arable landscape • Organic field pattern rationalised by estate ownership • Oak ash and field maple as hedgerow trees • Complex arrangements of plantations especially in the north • Ancient woodlands • Landscape parks and ornamental tree species • Substantial open areas created for airfields and by post WWII agricultural improvement • Dispersed settlement pattern of loosely clustered villages, hamlets and isolated farmsteads especially in the north • Settlements more clustered and less dispersed in the south • Rich stock of mediaeval and Tudor timber-framed and brick buildings and moated sites • A landscape of well wooded farmland in many places often with a well kept appearance

Location Within Suffolk this landscape character type stretches from Sicklesmere, on the south side of Bury St Edmunds, westward through and to the Cambridgeshire border and then southwards to the outskirts of Haverhill and Clare.

Geology, Landform and Soils The chalky boulder clay or till deposited by the great Anglian Glaciation forms the foundation of this area, but it is dissected, relatively deeply, by streams and rivers. The result is a landscape that undulates, sometimes strongly, in contrast to the landscape of the north Suffolk claylands, which have very little relative relief.

In the Hoxnian Interglacial there was a lake in a hollow on the surface of the Anglian till at Sicklesmere. The lacustrine clays that in-filled it were exploited by a brick works in the 19 th century and Roman kilns in the same area suggest an earlier exploitation of this resource.

The soils are predominately Hanslope clays except for some areas around Sicklesmere and Ickworth where the soils are more chalky and loamy. The clay soils of this landscape are relatively free draining because of the slopes that they lie on and their mineral content that they have.

Trees and Woodland Cover In the northern part of this landscape the woodland cover is extensive and interlocking, in the south, around , and Clare the cover is much more fragmentary. The tree cover is a mix based around oak, ash and field maple. However, the influence of estates and their ornamental planting is pervasive – sycamore, beech, larch, chestnut and conifers all recur throughout the landscape. Beech is particularly noticeable on the western edge of the landscape in places like Dalham.

26 Landholding and Enclosure Pattern In the Middle Ages there were several large wooded deer parks in this area, e.g. Park, Southwood Park in Hargrave, Combey Park in Denham and Broxted Park in Hundon. In some cases small remnant areas of woodland still survive, but the area of Broxted Park was utilised for Airfield in World War II and subsequently for Stradishall Prison. In post-medieval times important landscape parks were established at Ickworth (Capability Brown carried out work here 1769-76 for the 2 nd Earl of Bristol), , Saxham, Dalham and Branches Park in (Ambrose Dickens consulted Capability Brown for works here 1763-5).

There is a strong estate character throughout much of this landscape. This is especially strong in the northern part between Sicklesmere and . Here the influence of parkland and complex arrangements of plantations is very clear, as at Dalham, Ickworth and Nowton. The fields are generally medium to large and organic in form, although there are areas of planned layout apparent throughout the landscape, indicating the systematic enclosure of some land.

Settlement The area contains a number of substantial villages, as at Sicklesmere, , Chevington, , Kedington and Hundon, but also smaller linear hamlets, sometimes called ‘streets’ or ‘ends’. Small- to moderate-sized greens with associated houses are also scattered through the area, of which Hawstead Green is perhaps the best preserved. Dispersed farmsteads also occur, more so in the northern part of the area than in the south, where the settlement pattern is noticeably sparser. Some of these farmsteads were moated and substantial examples survive at Chevington Hall (a former country retreat of the abbots of Bury St Edmunds), Hawstead Place (a former mansion of the Drury family visited by Queen Elizabeth I in 1578) and Denham Hall. There are also the remains of two small medieval castles at Denham and Lidgate – the latter associated with a failed unofficial medieval borough which is now a smallish village.

Visual Experience The views in this landscape are often full of well-treed farmland and woodland. The influence of parkland and ornamental planting in the undulating landscape creates some very pleasant views. Just to the south of Bury St Edmunds the view is often confined by woodland. While in the southern part of this landscape the views are more open, without the interlocking woodland cover and fewer hedgerows the larger scale and shape of the landform is more evident.

Condition Much of the area has a rather well kept appearance with strong linkages of hedgerows and woodland maintained by the influence of shooting on these estates. However, in the south, the pressure of industrial farming on the management of land and the larger field size has modified this landscape removing much of the detail of the field pattern.

27 Undulating Ancient Farmland

Key Characteristics • Undulating arable landscape • Field pattern generally a random ancient pattern with occasional areas of regular fields associated with former mediaeval deer parks. • Oak ash and field maple as hedgerow trees • Substantial open areas created for airfields and by post WWII agricultural improvement • Studded with blocks of ancient woodland • Dispersed settlement pattern of loosely clustered villages, hamlets and isolated farmsteads • Villages often associated with greens or former greens • Rich stock of mediaeval and Tudor timber-framed and brick buildings and moated sites • A large scale landscape with long undulating open views trees, either in hedges or in woods, are always a prominent feature • In the undulating landscape, crop production, especially oilseeds can be visually prominent.

Location This landscape type only occurs in one place, which is an area of clay ‘upland’ bordering the Stour and Glem rivers in south-. The area lies between Clare and Cowlinge in the west and Shimpling and Lawshall in the east, extending northwards as far as Chedburgh. This landscape type covers only a very small part of Forest Heath to the south of the village of Gazeley.

Geology, landform and soils , in the northern part of this area, at 128m OD, is the highest point in Suffolk. The elevated plateau of chalky clay till laid down by the Anglian Glaciation is however much dissected by small valleys, giving a markedly undulating landscape, with some quite steep slopes. The sloping land, combined with the high chalk content of the glacial till, has created a large area of clay soils of the Hanslope series that are good for arable farming, (in contrast to more the difficult to cultivate Beccles series found on the clay plateau of High Suffolk).

Landholding and enclosure pattern This is predominantly an area of ‘ancient enclosure’, with an irregular pattern of fields bounded by large, long-established hedges. There are a few localised patches of more regular fields in areas like Hundon where three large medieval deer parks were enclosed in the post-medieval period. The construction of 2nd World War military airfields at Chedburgh and at Stradishall has also affected the historic field patterns.

Settlement The settlement pattern is one of dispersed farmsteads and hamlets, interspersed between moderately sized green-edge settlements. Some of the greens are well preserved, as at Depden, but many of the others were enclosed or in-filled with housing in the 18 th and 19 th centuries, as at Lawshall and Chedburgh, and survive only as names. There are only occasional larger villages, as at , Chedburgh or Glemsford.

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There is a rich stock of medieval and Tudor timber-framed and brick buildings, some of which lie within moated sites, e.g. Depden Hall and Giffords Hall in Wickhambrook, or on the green edges, as is the case of the important mid-13 th century house at Purton Green in .

The utilisation of parts of the former airfield at Chedburgh for industrial units has had a noticeable affect on the landscape, as has the use of the Stradishall airfield, on the edge of this landscape, for a prison. Throughout this landscape the large agricultural building is a recurring feature often associated with non-native trees such as poplar.

Trees and Woodland cover The area is well stocked with ancient woods of moderate size, usually situated on the more poorly drained clay hills. The long-enclosed nature of the landscape has helped to preserve the woods by excluding the grazing livestock that would otherwise have diminished the resource.

Visual experience In general there are long undulating open views throughout this landscape with trees, either in hedges or in woods, always a prominent feature. This is in direct contrast with the plateau claylands of High Suffolk where the views although open, are gently rolling and woodland is almost entirely absent.

There are only a few areas, where woodland is more clustered and the effects of agricultural rationalisation are not so apparent, such as the view to the south-west from . Here the landscape feels smaller and is confined by woods and hedges.

Condition The historic pattern of field boundaries has been degraded through 20 th century agricultural rationalisation that has resulted in a large number of hedges being removed. Furthermore, inappropriate tree planting on greens has also had an adverse effect on the character of the historic landscape. However despite these changes the landscape maintains much of its historic character.

29 Appendix 1

Figure 1: Landscape Character Area Level 2 Map

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