For Hertfordshire County Council
Landscape Management Plan for historic parkland
We helped Attenborough’s Fields implement conservation cattle grazing, and guide the landowners in its future management.
A close collaboration
Attenborough’s Fields is the historic parkland of Haydon Hill House, designated as a County Wildlife Site for its local nature conservation value.
We were asked to produce a Landscape Management Plan, and worked closely with HCC Rural Estates and Friends of Attenborough’s Fields to outline the key constraints – and to devise an appropriate set of aims and objectives.
It’s all in the detail
After carrying out a baseline data study for background context, our senior landscape consultant and estates manager undertook a thorough survey and evaluation of the site. This gathered information on its landscape, biodiversity, heritage, accessibility, infrastructure, maintenance and overall condition. This enabled us to create a Landscape Management Plan with detailed maps – which is now in use on site.
Grazed historic parkland
Where the site had previously been managed with horse grazing (to the detriment of the grassland), the horses were moved, and cattle grazing was implemented.
The focus of the plan was to manage the site primarily as grazed historic parkland, with permissive visitor access. The plan included a five-year action and maintenance process, to help the landowners in the management of the site.
