T H A M E S V A L L E Y ARCHAEOLOGICAL S E R V I C E S

Valley Lodge, Ufton Lane, Ufton Nervet, Lower Padworth, West Berkshire

Archaeological Watching Brief

by Andy Taylor and Steven Crabb

Site Code: TUN17/245

(SU 6154 6878) Valley Lodge, Ufton Lane, Ufton Nervet, Lower Padworth, West Berkshire

An Archaeological Watching Brief

For Mr and Mrs Kelleher

by Andy Taylor and Steven Crabb

Thames Valley Archaeological Services Ltd

Site Code TUN 17/245

February 2018 Summary

Site name: Valley Lodge, Ufton Lane, Ufton Nervet, Lower Padworth, West Berkshire

Grid reference: SU 6154 6878

Site activity: Watching Brief

Date and duration of project: 10th January to 6th February 2018

Project coordinator: Danielle Milbank

Site supervisor: Steven Crabb and Andy Taylor

Site code: TUN 17/245

Summary of results: No deposits or finds of any archaeological interest were observed.

Location and reference of archive: The archive is presently held at Thames Valley Archaeological Services, Reading and will be deposited at West Berkshire Museum in due course.

This report may be copied for bona fide research or planning purposes without the explicit permission of the copyright holder. All TVAS unpublished fieldwork reports are available on our website: www.tvas.co.uk/reports/reports.asp.

Report edited/checked by: Steve Ford 08.02.17 Steve Preston 08.02.17

i Thames Valley Archaeological Services Ltd, 47–49 De Beauvoir Road, Reading RG1 5NR Tel. (0118) 926 0552; Fax (0118) 926 0553; email [email protected]; website: www.tvas.co.uk Valley Lodge, Ufton Lane, Ufton Nervet, Lower Padworth, West Berkshire An Archaeological Watching Brief

by Andy Taylor and Steven Crabb

Report 17/245

Introduction

This report documents the results of an archaeological watching brief carried out at Valley Lodge, Ufton Lane,

Ufton Nervet, Lower Padworth, West Berkshire (SU 6154 6878) (Fig. 1). The work was commissioned by Mr

Kenneth Brannen of The Keen Partnership, The Courtyard, Edinburgh Road, Reading on behalf of Mr and Mrs

Kelleher, Tree World Nursery, Ufton Lane, Reading, RG7 4HG.

Planning consent (app 16/02615/FUL) has been gained from West Berkshire Council for the replacement of a bungalow with a larger bungalow. The planning consent includes a condition (6) relating to archaeology, which requires a watching brief to be carried out during groundworks.

This is in accordance with the Department for Communities and Local Government’s National Planning

Policy Framework (NPPF 2012) and West Berkshire Council's policies on archaeology. The field investigation was carried out to a specification approved by Ms Sarah Orr, Archaeological Officer with West Berkshire

Council. The fieldwork was undertaken by Steven Crabb and Andy Taylor between 10th January and 6th

February 2018 and the site code is TUN 17/245.

The archive is presently held at Thames Valley Archaeological Services, Reading and will be deposited at

West Berkshire Museum in due course.

Location, topography and geology

The site is located on a flat parcel of land at a height of c. 50m above Ordnance Datum on the floor of the

Kennet valley. It lies to the north of the Newbury to Reading railway line and to the west of Ufton Lane, immediately south of Tree World garden centre (Fig. 2). Beyond the railway line to the south are the Kennet and

Avon Canal and the river Kennet. The underlying geology is mapped as being on the boundary between alluvium associated with the river Kennet and the Beenham Grange Gravel (BGS 2000) with flint gravels observed on site.

1 Archaeological background

The archaeological potential for this site was outlined by Mr. Alex Godden, former Archaeological Officer for

West Berkshire. The Kennet Valley is archaeologically rich with a wealth of sites on the gravel floor of the valley discovered by aerial photography, mineral extraction and systematic survey (Lobb and Rose 1996; Dils and Yates; 2013; Gates; 1975). Upper Palaeolithic/Mesolithic deposit modelling suggests that the site lies partly on an area of high potential for prehistoric deposits, as the floodplain of the river Kennet which is a zone where

Mesolithic occupation is often found (Allen and Allen 1994; Froom 2012). The site is located close to a number of sites of other periods recorded in the Historic Environment Record. Approximately 200m to the north-east,

Iron Age and Roman enclosures along with a Saxon Grübenhaus were partially excavated (Manning 1964).

Fieldwork to the south-west revealed a later Bronze Age site with a Roman villa and bath house (Bradley et al

1980; Cowell et al 1978).

Objectives and methodology

The purpose of the watching brief was to excavate and record any archaeological deposits or finds affected by new construction work. This involved examination of any areas of ground reduction and the digging of trenches for services as necessary.

Results

Initially two test pits were dug in order to test the level of the water table, during the process of breakup the slab of the previous structure (Fig. 3; Pl. 1 and 2). The second test pit (Fig. 3) was extended for use as the location of a new septic tank.

The stratigraphy observed in the test pits comprised 0.30m of modern made ground (Fig. 4) overlying

0.20m of subsoil overlying gravel natural. Test pit 2 consisted of 0.30m of topsoil overlying 0.20m of subsoil overlying gravel natural. These were dug to a depth of c.0.90m with the water table encountered at 0.80m.

Foundation trenches for the new bungalow measured 0.65m wide and were dug to a depth of c.0.80m and the stratigraphy observed was consistent with the initial test trenches (Figs 3 and 4; Pl. 3).

No archaeological features were observed in either the test pits or the footing trenches.

Finds

No finds of any archaeological interest were recovered during the watching brief.

2 Conclusion

Despite the site’s potential for archaeology to be present, no deposits or finds were encountered during the course of the watching brief.

References Allen J R L and Allen S, 1994-7, ‘A stratified prehistoric site from the Kennet floodplain at Ufton Nervet, Berkshire’, Berkshire Archaeol J 75, 1–8 BGS, 2000, British Geological Survey, 1:50000, Sheet 268, Solid and Drift Edition, Keyworth Bradley, R J, Lobb, S, Richards, J and Robinson, M, 1980, ‘Two late Bronze Age settlements on the Kennet gravels: excavations at Aldermaston Wharf and Knight’s Farm, Burghfield, Berkshire’, Proc Prehist Soc 46, 217–95 Cowell, R W, Fulford M G and Lobb, S, 1978, ‘Excavations of prehistoric and Roman settlement at Aldermaston Wharf’, Berkshire Archaeol J 69, 1–35 Dils, J and Yates, M, nd, An Historical Atlas of Berkshire, Berkshire Record Society, Eynsham (undated but 2013) Gates, T, 1975, The Thames Valley, An archaeological Survey of the River Gravels, Berkshire Archaeol Comm Pubn 1, Reading Froom, R, 2012, The Mesolithic of the Kennet Valley, privately printed Lobb, S J and Rose, P G, 1996, Archaeological Survey of the Lower Kennet Valley, Berkshire, Wessex Archaeol Rep 9, Salisbury Manning, W H, 1974, ‘Excavations on the late Iron Age, Roman and Saxon sites at Ufton Nervet, Berkshire in 1961–1963’, Berkshire Archaeol J 67, 24–39 NPPF 2012, National Planning Policy Framework, Dept Communities and Local Govt, London

3 OS 1:25k HD Great Britain 2016. Copyright © 2016 Crown Copyright; OS, Licence61 Number 100034184 62 www.memory-map.com

Slough 70

70 70000

READING Maidenhead

Windsor

Hungerford Thatcham Bracknell Newbury Wokingham SITE

SITE 69

69 69000 68

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SU61000 62000 TUN 17/245 Valley Lodge, Tree World Nursery, Ufton Lane, Ufton Nervet, Lower Padworth, West Berkshire, 2018 Archaeological Watching Brief Figure 1. Location of site in relation to Lower Padworth and

within West Berkshire. 67 67 Reproduced under licence from Ordnance Survey Explorer Digital mapping at 1:12500 61 Crown Copyright reserved 62 Ufton Lane, Padworth 4 4 6 6 1 1 5 6 0 0 0 0 m m

16886880000m 168800m

SITE

16876570000m 168700m

SU61500 61600 4 4 6 6 1 1 5 6 0 0 0 0 m m

TUN 17/245

N Valley Lodge, Ufton Lane,0 5 10Ufton15 20 2Nervet,5 30 35 40 45 50 Lower Padworth, West Berkshire,m 2018 Archaeological Watching Brief Figure 2. Detailed location of site. 17/245wb

Reproduced fromOS M aOrdnancesterMap 12 5Survey0/2500/ 1Digital0000 sc aMappingle under licence. WCrownednesd acopyrighty, February reserved.7, 2018, ID :ScaleBW1-0 1:12500688589 maps.blackwell.co.uk

1:1250 scale print at A4, Centre: 461543 E, 168771 N

©Crown Copyright and database rights 2017 OS 100019980 68800

New footing

TP2 TP1

68750

SU61500 61550 TUN 17/245

N Valley Lodge, Ufton Lane, Ufton Nervet, Lower Padworth, West Berkshire, 2018 Archaeological Watching Brief

Figure 3. Observed areas.

0 25m Test Pit 1

NW SE 49.87maOD

Made ground

Brown clay silt (Subsoil)

Flint gravel (natural geology) watertable

New footings

NW SE 50.25m

Topsoil

Subsoil

Flint gravel (natural geology)

TUN 17/245 Valley Lodge, Ufton Lane, Ufton Nervet, Lower Padworth, West Berkshire, 2018 Archaeological Watching Brief

Figure 4. Representative sections.

0 1m Plate 1. Site during the break up of the previous slab, looking east, Scales: 2m and 1m.

Plate 2. Test pit 1, looking south, Plate 3. Represenation of footing section, looking Scales: horizontal 2m and 1m, vertical 0.1m. north, Scales: horizontal 2m, vertical 0.5m.

TUN 17/245 Valley Lodge, Ufton Lane, Ufton Nervet, Lower Padworth, West Berkshire, 2018 Archaeological Watching Brief Plates 1 - 3. TIME CHART

Calendar Years

Modern AD 1901

Victorian AD 1837

Post Medieval AD 1500

Medieval AD 1066

Saxon AD 410

Roman AD 43 AD 0 BC Iron Age 750 BC

Bronze Age: Late 1300 BC

Bronze Age: Middle 1700 BC

Bronze Age: Early 2100 BC

Neolithic: Late 3300 BC

Neolithic: Early 4300 BC

Mesolithic: Late 6000 BC

Mesolithic: Early 10000 BC

Palaeolithic: Upper 30000 BC

Palaeolithic: Middle 70000 BC

Palaeolithic: Lower 2,000,000 BC Thames Valley Archaeological Services Ltd, 47-49 De Beauvoir Road, Reading RG1 5NR

Tel: 0118 9260552 Email: [email protected] Web: www.tvas.co.uk

Offices in: Brighton, Taunton, Stoke-on-Trent and Ennis (Ireland)