The Challenges of Woodland Restoration

Bringing small woodlands back into management is an incredibly difficult and usually an expensive undertaking. This makes the progress in the restoration of Round Lown Woods near Sudborough that much more remarkable. Last week students on the Foundation Degree in Countryside & Wildlife Management course took a guided walk with the owners - Gerald and Sue Collini - and learnt about the practical challenges they had faced in the restoration of the wood.

Fig 1: Entrance to Round Lown Wood

Fig 2: Sue, Lynne, Kim and Gerald on an ancient earthbank in the wood

With Gerald taking the lead on implementing a management plan to extract timber for firewood sales on site, Sue has pushed her Forest Schools initiative. This recognises the value of 'natural capital' and the benefits of outdoor learning to all ages and abilities - you can read about it here.

Fig 3: Early spring sunshine dapples through to the woodland floor.

Students then convened in the bespoke woodland shack for a cuppa to reflect on their experience. Sue and Gerald are members of the Rockingham Forest Coppice Group which aims to promote sustainable woodland management practices for some of our most ancient of woodlands. So it seems the future of our woodland heritage is safe in sunny Sudborough!