CONTENTS Executive Summary: Wood Lotting In ...... i

1. Introduction...... 1 Overview...... 1 2. The Study...... 5 Study Brief...... 5 Approach...... 5 3. The Nature and Extent of Lotting ...... 9 Lotting ...... 9 Priority Woodlands...... 15 Consultations ...... 17 4. The Character of Lotted Woods – The Woodland Surveys ...... 19 Bromley Green Woods...... 20 Combwell Woods...... 25 Hoads Wood...... 31 Lamberden Wood...... 36 Longbeech Woods...... 39 Old Park Wood ...... 45 Bredhurst Wood ...... 55 Fryarne Park...... 59 Tye Wood ...... 62

i 5. Results of The Questionnaire Survey...... 65

6. Problems and Opportunities...... 75 Problems...... 75 Controls...... 75 Opportunities...... 78 7. Conclusions and Recomendations...... 81 Conclusions ...... 81 Impacts of Lotting: Structures And Activities ...... 82 Lack of Woodland Management...... 85 Advice ...... 87 Recommendations...... 89 Appendices ...... 93 Appendix 1 : List of Consultees ...... 95 Appendix 2 : Woodland Assessment Pro Forma ...... 97 Appendix 3 : Woodland Lots And Titles...... 99 Appendix 4 : Questionnaire ...... 103

ii TABLES Table 1 Identified Potentially Lotted Woodlands in Kent...... 11 Table 2 Wood lotting in Kent woodlands ...... 13 Table 3 Wood lotting in AONB...... 13 Table 4 Wood lotting in all AONBs in Kent (Kent Downs and High Weald) ...... 13 Table 5 Wood lotting outside the AONBs ...... 13 Table 6 Make up of lotted woodlands ...... 14 Table 7 Priority Woodlands...... 15 Table 8 Lot numbers and average sizes...... 16 Table 9 Owner characteristics ...... 65 Table 10 Respondents’ wood types (NB: These categories overlap)...... 66 Table 11 Restrictions / obligations covering lots (Percentage of answers to the question).....66 Table 12 Advice before buying a lot...... 67 Table 13 Selling a lot...... 67 Table 14 Purpose of ownership ...... 68 Table 15 Visiting the lot ...... 68 Table 16 Management activities ...... 69 Table 17 Time taken and cost of management activities – 3 years...... 69 Table 18 Planted species...... 70 Table 19 Wildlife support activities...... 70 Table 20 Structures (total sample 10) ...... 70 Table 21 Advice and its sources...... 71 Table 22 Topics for further advice...... 72 Table 23 Antisocial behaviour...... 73

iii FIGURES Figure 1 The extent of woodland cover in the South East of England...... 3 Figure 2 The location of lotted woods in Kent ...... 10 Figure 3 Age of lots ...... 16 Figure 4: Hornbeam coppice with frequent hazel...... 20 Figure 5 Bromley Green Woods ...... 21 Figure 6: Underwood and coppice removed leaving oak standards ...... 22 Figure 7: All trees removed to create open grazing paddocks ...... 23 Figure 8: A JCB removing all trees and vegetation from one garden strip ...... 23 Figure 9: A woodland strip now used as a haulage yard...... 23 Figure 10: JCB activity leaving bare disturbed ground...... 24 Figure 11: Sweet chestnut stools of considerable age ...... 25 Figure 12 Combwell Woods...... 26 Figure 13: Woodland dominated by sweet chestnut coppice...... 27 Figure 14: A cleared strip through the wood...... 27 Figure 15: New planting with ornamental species ...... 28 Figure 16: A container set within a small fenced area...... 29 Figure 17: Fencing surrounding small re-lotted area ...... 29 Figure 18: A sign about positive woodland management that has been undertaken...... 30 Figure 19: Little management has led to the development of a scrubby understorey ...... 31 Figure 20 Hoads Wood...... 32 Figure 21: Coppice stools falling apart under their own weight...... 33 Figure 22: Ancient boundary banks topped with ancient hornbeam coppice stools...... 33 Figure 23: Clearings dominated by bracken and fringed by birch ...... 34 Figure 24: Lot with domestic shed and tree platform...... 34 Figure 25: Lot bordered by Lawson cypress and Douglas fir...... 34

iv Figure 26: Wood dominated by hornbeam coppice...... 36 Figure 27 Lamberden Wood...... 37 Figure 28: Fly tipping along road frontage...... 38 Figure 29: Small stream runs through the wood with no marginal or aquatic vegetation...... 38 Figure 30 Longbeech Wood...... 40 Figure 31: Compartments separated by well-maintained rides...... 41 Figure 32: A cleared area with regenerating birch and bracken...... 41 Figure 33: Areas converted to Scots Pine with old coppice stools evident beneath the canopy...... 41 Figure 34: Area coppiced in 2005 ...... 42 Figure 35: Area coppiced in 2006 ...... 43 Figure 36: Small shed associated with area of recent coppicing ...... 43 Figure 37: Area coppiced in 2006 ...... 43 Figure 38: Small shed ad stacked wood associated with area of recent coppicing...... 44 Figure 39: Poor attempts at coppicing...... 44 Figure 40: Traditional coppice ...... 45 Figure 41: Conifer plantation ...... 45 Figure 42 Old Park Wood...... 46 Figure 43: Lack of management resulting in large areas regenerating with birch...... 47 Figure 44: Small area coppiced over last 1 –2 years...... 47 Figure 45: Creation of clearings around camp fires, picnic areas etc...... 47 Figure 46: Retrospective planning permission being sought for caravan ...... 48 Figure 47: Creation of associated hard standing ...... 48 Figure 48: …..and access track ...... 48 Figure 49: Gate to access track...... 49 Figure 50: High fencing for which planning permission has been granted...... 49 Figure 51: Continuation of high fencing through wood...... 49 Figure 52: Shed with planning permission...... 50 Figure 53: Poor coppicing associated with development ...... 50

v Figure 54: General activities within lots ...... 50 Figure 55: More activities...... 50 Figure 56: Shed with planning permission...... 51 Figure 57:….and more activities...... 51 Figure 58: …..and still more activities...... 51 Figure 59: Approved as a tool shed but clearly used for accommodation ...... 52 Figure 60: Side view of same structure...... 52 Figure 61: A shed without planning permission...... 52 Figure 62: A clearing...... 52 Figure 63: Storage...... 53 Figure 64: Another shed...... 53 Figure 65: A clearing and weekend campsite ...... 53 Figure 66: Barricade ...... 53 Figure 67: A container for storage ...... 54 Figure 68: Construction ...... 54 Figure 69: Notice in response to past flytipping...... 55 Figure 70 Bredhurst Wood...... 56 Figure 71: Route turned to liquid mud ...... 57 Figure 72: Rutted route compacted around tree roots ...... 57 Figure 73: Routes becoming impassable to legitimate users...... 58 Figure 74: Flytipping...... 58 Figure 75 Fryarne Park ...... 60 Figure 76: Fallen standards reflect lack of management ...... 61 Figure 77: Overgrown woodland from lack of management...... 61 Figure 78: Sweet chestnut and ash coppice...... 62 Figure 79 Tye Wood...... 63 Figure 80: Name sign of lot ...... 64

vi EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: WOOD LOTTING IN KENT

PURPOSE WOODLANDS IN KENT THE EXTENT OF WOOD LOTTING IN KENT 1. This study, commissioned by the Kent 4. Woods are part of English culture. Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Woodlands lend unique character to 8. The headline facts to emerge from this (AONB) Unit and undertaken by Land Use individual places. Woodlands both define study of wood lotting are: Consultants, examines the phenomenon of landscapes and are individual places in their wood lotting in Kent. It looks at the extent own right, with their own historical and • 44 woodlands in Kent have been or are of wood lotting, its effects, and the issues ecological integrity, and their own name. in the process of being lotted. This is a and opportunities it raises. far greater number than had been 5. Kent is one of the most wooded counties anticipated 2. This is the first study in England of its in England. The character of the County kind. Whilst specific to Kent it raises issues owes much to its woodlands. Kent also has • These lotted woodlands cover 1,774 ha. of national concern. If undertaken by the one of the largest areas of ancient woodland or 3.7% of Kent’s woodland cover unscrupulous woodlotting can represent a of any county in England wi