Proposed Golf Course, Road, Highworth,

An Archaeological Watching Brief

For Mr. D Grant

by Stephen Hammond

Thames Valley Archaeological Services

Ltd

Site Code HGC 04/05

March 2004 Summary

Site name: Proposed Golf Course, Highworth, Wiltshire

Grid reference: SU 200 942

Site activity: Watching Brief

Date and duration of project: 2nd–3rd March 2004

Project manager: Steve Ford

Site supervisor: Stephen Hammond

Site code: HGC 04/05

Area of site: c. 30ha

Summary of results: No archaeological finds or features were discovered from the watching brief.

Monuments identified: None

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

This report may be copied for bona fide research or planning purposes without the explicit permission of the copyright holder

Report edited/checked by: Steve Ford9 08.03.04 Steve Preston9 08.03.04

i

Proposed Golf Course, Highworth, Wiltshire An Archaeological Watching Brief

by Stephen Hammond

Report 04/05

Introduction

This report documents the results of an archaeological watching brief carried out on land at the former

Highworth Nurseries, Lechlade Road, Highworth, Wiltshire (SU 200 942) (Fig. 1). The work was commissioned by Mr Michael Moss of Fitzsimons, Eastcott House, 4 High Street, Old Town, Swindon, SN1 3EP on behalf of

Mr D Grant of Highworth Nurseries, Lechlade Road, Highworth. A planning consent has been granted by

Swindon Borough Council to create a new 9-hole golf course on the former nursery site. The consent is subject to a condition relating to archaeology which requires a watching brief to be carried out during ground works relating to the excavation for a haul road and a new car park.

This is in accordance with the Department of the Environment’s Planning Policy Guidance, Archaeology and Planning (PPG16 1990), and the Borough’s policies on archaeology. The field investigation was carried out to a specification approved by Mr Roy Canham, County Archaeologist to . The fieldwork was undertaken by Stephen Hammond between the 2nd–3rd March 2004 and the site code is

HGC04/05.

The archive is presently held at Thames Valley Archaeological Services, Reading and will be deposited with Swindon Museum in due course.

Location, topography and geology

The site is located on the west side of Lechlade Road, just north of Highworth, Wiltshire on a roughly rectangular parcel of land. The land itself is relatively flat at an approximate height of 80m above Ordnance

Datum. Evidence of medieval ridge and furrow (field systems) can be seen towards the north-west of the site.

The underlying geology according to Geological Maps (BGS 1974) consists of clay with the possibility of River

Terrace Gravel. The ground reduction exercise failed to dig deep enough to expose any natural geological horizons.

1

Archaeological background

The site lies within a general area which has produced sites and finds of prehistoric and Roman date. The site also lies in within an area containing a number of unusual circular enclosures of uncertain function with examples to the north-west and to the east. It was possible that occupation or landscape deposits of prehistoric,

Roman or later date would lie within the area.

Objectives and methodology

The purpose of the watching brief was to excavate and record any archaeological deposits affected by the new construction work. This was to involve the examination of areas where topsoil stripping and ground reduction associated with the new haul road and car parking area took place. Sufficient time would be allowed in groundworkers’ schedules to carry this but without causing any undue delay. All resulting spoilheaps would be checked for finds.

Results

As an existing road was to be used to form part of the haulage road and because part of the proposed road was not to be stripped but built up instead, it was only necessary to observe the ground reduction work carried out for the new car park and part of the new haulage road directly to the west which joined into it (Fig. 2). Observations made during the exercise showed that the areas were stripped down by approximately 0.30m. This revealed a stratigraphy consisting of 0.14m of mid grey/brown silty clay topsoil covering 0.16m of mid yellow/grey/brown subsoil containing occasional pieces of printed willow pattern china, slate, brick and tile. No natural geological horizons were encountered.

Finds

No archaeological finds were revealed during the watching brief.

2

Conclusion

Despite continuous and intensive observation it was noted that the stripping work failed to dig deep enough to reveal any potential archaeological horizons. Therefore, no potential archaeological features were affected or seen during the ground stripping exercise. Further to this, no finds were discovered in the resulting spoil heaps.

References BGS, 1974, British Geological Survey, 1:50000, Sheet 252, Solid and Drift Edition, Keyworth PPG 16, 1990, Archaeology and Planning, Dept of the Environment Planning Policy Guidance 16, HMSO

3 SITE 95000

SITE

94000

93000

20000 21000 HGC 04/05 Highworth Golf Course, Highworth, Wiltshire, 2004 Archaeological Watching Brief

Figure 1. Location of site near Highworth and within Wiltshire.

Reproduced from Ordnance Survey Pathfinder 1134 & 1135 SU09/19 & 29/39 at 1:12500 Ordnance Survey Licence AL52324A0001 94500 SITE

94400

94300

94200

Haul Route not stripped

94100

Stripped area Observed Haul 94000 Route

93900

93800

93700

SU19800 19900 20000 20100 20200 20300

HGC 04/05 Highworth Golf Course, Highworth, Wiltshire, 2004 Archaeological Watching Brief

Figure 2. Location of proposed development area for golf course and the observed haul route.

Reproduced from Ordnance Survey Superplan at 1:5000 Ordnance Survey Licence AL52324A0001