©Crown Copyright. All rights reserved. Hertfordshire County Council, LA 076678, 2001
| Landscape Character Assessment | HertsDirect | Environment | |||
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©Crown
Copyright. All rights reserved. Hertfordshire County Council, LA 076678, 2001
This area lies between Borehamwood to the east, Bushey to the west and Elstree to the south. To the north is the Aldenham plateau.
©Crown
Copyright. All rights reserved. Hertfordshire County Council, LA 076678, 2001
An area of gently undulating landform and considerable pasture within an intact landscape framework .A combination of tall bushy hedgerows and field trees contain views into and across the landscape. Two reservoirs are important features but are not prominent visually, being hidden by landform vegetation. Parkland areas, mostly associated with private schools, are apparent in the landscape and add to the pastoral character. The integrity of the area is diluted on approaching the towns that enclose to the east, west and south.
Aldenham Country Park (Environmental Land Management Service (Rural Estates)
HCC)
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Geology and soils. The underlying geology to the area comprises Tertiary clay overlaid by slowly permeable and seasonally waterlogged soils with some brown subsoils, (Windsor series). Locally, there are areas of fine loamy and silty soils over the clays.
Topography. An undulating plateau area with the highest ground adjacent to Elstree Ridge. The central plateau area has minimal falls, while to the edges slopes are steeper where the landform becomes more strongly undulating in the minor valleys that run off the slopes. The two reservoirs are significant landforms, albeit at the hand of man.
Degree of slope. Typically 1 in 80 across the plateau. 1 in 20 in the minor valleys to the south-west, e.g. Hilfield Farm.
Altitude range. 75 - 111m.
Hydrology. The clay soils support small ponds and a number of visually and ecologically important streams that flow off the plateau. The streams include Tykes Water, which receives water from Aldenham Reservoir and then passes through a lake at Aldenham Park, before travelling north through Radlett. Aldenham Reservoir, 65 acres in size, was hand-dug by French prisoners of war between 1795-97. Its purpose was to control the flow of water levels in the River Colne following the construction of the Grand Union Canal. The larger Hilfield Reservoir, opened in 1957 to provide drinking water, is now an LNR.
Land cover and land use. The primary land use is pasture for both horses and cattle. The area contains a number of parklands which also account for the high proportion of pasture. The most notable park is Aldenham Park, now partly forming the grounds of Haberdasher's Aske's School. The grounds contain fine specimen trees, an ornamental lake, woodland and the remains of a magnificent lime avenue west of the house. Other parklands include Kendall Hall and Aldenham School, both private schools.
Secondary land use is arable but not the larger open fields that characterise much of the Aldenham Plateau to the north. The reservoirs are a key land use. Besides their major functions they provide a habitat for birds and have good vegetation, including perimeter shelterbelts. The Elstree aerodrome operates from a small runway north of Hilfield Reservoir. There are other recreational land uses including the Aldenham Country Park and a golf course.
Vegetation and wildlife. There are few ancient or semi-natural woodlands in the area, mostly plantations associated with the parklands or reservoirs. Species include oak, sycamore, lime, pine and poplar,with native black poplars along Tykes Water. Hedges are very important in this landscape, but are in decline in places with gaps developing and infill fencing rather than replanting. They are typically tall and bushy with mature field trees. Species are mixed and include elm, field maple, hawthorn and hazel. Field trees are oak with some ash. Areas of elm by the M1 are in decline. On the London clay there are some neutral grasslands.
Field pattern. The historic field pattern is mainly pre-18th century organic enclosure. This pattern is largely intact with small to medium-sized irregular fields. Exceptions to this are towards Bushey, where there has been 20th-century enclosure on the urban edge and around Aldenham reservoir where there is some parliamentary enclosure.
Transport pattern. A number of straight arterial roads pass through the area. The Roman Watling Street A5 runs north to Radlett and verges are often wide. The A41 and the M1 run close to each other to the west of the area. Secondary roads are often straight, e.g. around Aldenham Park. The St Pancras railway runs to the east.
Settlements and built form. The settlement pattern is dispersed with no villages, rather a number of farmsteads and a few individual houses.
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There are filtered and framed views into much of the area, particularly from Elstree. Views within the area are limited by the density of hedgerows and plantation woodlands. The two reservoirs are concealed from view even at close distance. The area is generally coherent apart from to the south west where there is a mix of recreational, industrial and agricultural uses and the noisy M1/A41 corridor contributes to the downgrading.
Rarity and distinctiveness. This landscape type is frequent in this part of the county. The distinctive features are the reservoirs and the private schools set in mature parklands.
A number of structures create visual impact, including the electricity transformer station, the dam banks of Hilfield reservoir, the laboratory building at Hilfield reservoir, industrial units by Aldenham reservoir and the aerodrome hangars. Two major power lines run through the area. Built edges of the settlements are particularly raw in places, most notably on the northern edge of Borehamwood.
There are a good number of rights of way in the area, but the M1/A41 corridor and, to a lesser extent, the St Pancras railway line act as barriers from the larger settlements. Aldenham Country Park is centred on the reservoir and provides a local attraction, with sailing, fishing ,walking and a rare breeds area. Other recreational facilities include Medburn Equestrian Centre, Borehamwood golf course and Elstree aerodrome.
The lakesides at Aldenham and Hilfield are some of the county's most valued landscapes (B). Otherwise, the area is largely unremarked upon for distinctiveness (E).
Watling Chase Community Forest.
SAM: Penne's Place moated site (grounds of Haberdasher's Aske's School).
English Heritage Grade II listing: Aldenham Park
| CONDITION | |
|---|---|
| Land cover change: | localised |
| Age structure of tree cover: | mixed |
| Extent of semi-natural habitat survival: | fragmented |
| Management of semi-natural habitat: | variable |
| Survival of cultural pattern: | intact |
| Impact of built development: | high |
| Impact of land-use change: | moderate |
| ROBUSTNESS | |
| Impact of landform: | apparent |
| Impact of land cover: | prominent |
| Impact of historic pattern: | continuous |
| Visibility from outside: | locally visible |
| Sense of enclosure: | partial |
| Visual unity: | coherent |
| Distinctiveness/rarity: | unusual |
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Cattle at Kendal Hall Farm (J. Billingsley)
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