summary

 
©Crown Copyright. All rights reserved. Hertfordshire County Council, LA 076678, 2001

LOCATION

Amorphous area between West End in the west and the southern edge of Hertford Heath in the east, and between the arable, north-facing slopes of the Lea valley to the north and the small plateau to the south.

 
©Crown Copyright. All rights reserved. Hertfordshire County Council, LA 076678, 2001

LANDSCAPE CHARACTER

Steeply undulating wooded slopes, clearly differentiated by topography, woodland and age of settlement from both the arable slope to the north and the small plateau to the south. Very articulated and complex topography, with parkland and ancient settlements strung out along winding undulating lanes. An 'old' landscape pattern, remote and enclosed, with a small, domestic scale. Densely wooded and treed, with a clear pattern of irregular fields with tall treed boundaries and good views across the Lea valley. Here arable conversion does not appear to have had a negative impact on hedges.

KEY CHARACTERISTICS

• small ancient settlements
• intricate road system
• extensive broadleaf woodland
• strongly undulating north-facing landform
• small woodland blocks and tall dense hedges
• very private area, with discreetly concealed parkland

DISTINCTIVE FEATURES

• flint houses and walls
• mature hedgerow oaks, young mature hedgerow ash
• ancient settlements with 16th-18th century cottages
• lodges and boundary woodland associated with parkland

View of West End Farm from A414 showing double slope (P. Shears)

assessment

PHYSICAL INFLUENCES

Geology and soils. Slowly permeable seasonally waterlogged clay soils over Tertiary clay (Windsor series).

Topography. Very undulating north-facing slope with many minor valleys.

Degree of slope. 1 in 35.

Altitude range. 75m to 120m.

Hydrology. A few hidden streams in woodland; artificial lakes and ponds in parkland.

Land cover and land use. This area is predominantly wooded farmland and parkland. Most land uses are well screened from view, except for the golf course in Bedwell Park. The farmland consists mainly of pastoral fields, often in equine occupation, with some arable.

Vegetation and wildlife. Woodland cover is extensive and interlocking, particularly with the screening woodland belts around parkland. It is complex in origin, a mix of ancient and secondary woodland as a result of late medieval clearance. The dominant species are oak/hornbeam and ash, with some elm. Field boundaries are prominent and of several types: low to medium thorn hedges with oak or ash standards; tree rows, ie., overgrown hedges, again of thorn, oak and ash; very tall elm hedges; or a low hedge on a bank, usually mixed with hornbeam. Hedgerow trees are either mature oak standards or young mature ash standards. North of Little Berkhamsted there are some veteran oak pollards, while Great Groves contains the locally rare wild service tree. There is some wet rush pasture towards the summit; elsewhere most cattle pasture is now equestrian grazing.

HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL INFLUENCES

This area appears to have remained largely untouched by the 20th century. Most of the settlements are small and medieval in origin, with few modern developments. Deer parks (Camfield pre-1766; Bedwell pre-1406) have evolved into parklands and the pattern of fields and woodlands appears to have changed very little over time. In Stocking Lane, Bayford, just east of the village, there is a moated site which is a Scheduled Ancient Monument. Parklands include:

• Camfield Place (home of the late Barbara Cartland and previously frequently visited by Beatrice Potter). It is 19th century Italianate with a water tower, a small 18th-century stable block and early 19th-century lodges and gates to Hatfield Road.
• Bedwell Park is a late 17th-century building in extensive parkland, which was formerly a medieval deer park. It is now a golf course with tree belts, an avenue, clumps, ponds and lakes and a walled kitchen garden. Repton is thought to have worked there but there is no Red Book. The exterior of the house is gabled Tudor with a battlemented tower and ornate lodges dating from 1861.
• Culverwood House parkland is well screened and the house is set on the plateau above.
• Essendon Place, now in institutional use, but marked by very fine early 18th-century wrought iron gates

Field pattern. The field pattern is irregular, with small to medium size fields.

Transport pattern. This area has a very organic pattern of winding, undulating and sunken roads linking small villages, hamlets and isolated farms. Verges tend to be narrow, and some are ditched.

Settlements and built form. Dwellings in this area are notably older in origin and style than those on the plateau, and feature soft red and blue brick (often in a chequerboard pattern), black weatherboard and clay pegtile roofs. They are found only at the western end of the area (West End and Wildhill). Farmhouses are of white weatherboard or white render and there is considerable use of flint (with red brick) for buildings as well as walls.

OTHER SOURCES OF AREA-SPECIFIC INFORMATION

Pevsner, N., rev. Cherry, B., Hertfordshire, Penguin (2000), p.141.

HCC data on historic parks and gardens

evaluation

VISUAL AND SENSORY PERCEPTION

Although the topography and location of this area make it widely visible from the north, it is not possible to discern details within the area, due to the dense woodland and hedgerows. Similarly, within the area views are short and limited by vegetation, with few views out. This small-scale, very contained landscape of woods, treed field boundaries and irregular fields, has a coherent and distinctive common pattern. It is a tranquil area, with comparatively little road traffic on minor roads and no railway.

Rarity and distinctiveness. This is a very unusual area by virtue of the combination of landform, settlement and land cover. The parklands are not/no longer considered to be of especial historic value.

VISUAL IMPACT

The impact of built development within this area is negligible - the older linear settlements sit well in the landscape. There is some apparent land-use change, from pasture to arable, but this is one of the few areas within which this change to arable appears to have had little impact on field boundaries.

ACCESSIBILITY

Footpaths, bridleways and waymarked routes are widespread throughout the area. Their condition is fair; they are of variable width, usually with a mud surface.

COMMUNITY VIEWS

'In the woodland, where the sunlight splashes from leaf to leaf, spangling a moist earth carpeted with rusty leaves, dead sticks and creeping moss, and along the lanes, narrow and winding with many a hill and blind bend, you could feel yourself 100 miles from anywhere, yet the rim of London is only half-a-dozen miles away.' A description of Bedwell Park in 'Essendon - the village on a hill', Herts. Countryside, Vol. 19, No.77, pp.206-09

There is little evidence that this area is valued for its distinctiveness but some local sites within it are mentioned (E).

LANDSCAPE RELATED DESIGNATIONS

Landscape Conservation Area

 

CONDITION
Land cover change:	insignificant
Age structure of tree cover:	mixed
Extent of semi-natural habitat survival:	extensive
Management of semi-natural habitat:	good
Survival of cultural pattern:	intact
Impact of built development:	low
Impact of land-use change:	moderate
ROBUSTNESS
Impact of landform:	prominent
Impact of land cover:	prominent
Impact of historic pattern:	interrupted
Visibility from outside:	widely visible
Sense of enclosure:	contained
Visual unity:	unified
Distinctiveness/rarity:	unusual

guidelines

STRATEGY AND GUIDELINES FOR MANAGING CHANGE: IMPROVE AND CONSERVE

• encourage local farmers to resist further change from pasture to arable
• encourage local farmers to retain unimproved pasture and grazing animals other than horses
• ensure, via SPG if necessary, that developments in equine recreation respect the character of the area, especially in the detail of boundary treatments and buildings
• development proposals that would result in permanent change to the historic landscape character of this area will not be permitted
• promote woodland/farm management as a means of increasing biodiversity, by maintaining a 5-20m rough grassland strip around arable field margins and woodland edges
• golf courses should only be permitted in historic parklands where:
• i) the original layout and features of the parkland can be retained;
• ii) existing trees are retained and adequate provision is made for their maintenance and management;
• iii) all new tree and shrub planting either uses species already present within the parkland, in similar designs, proportions and mixes, or uses locally native species where these would be more appropriate;
• iv) a buffer zone can be created around any historic artefacts, to protect their historic integrity;
• v) a long-term management plan is submitted with the planning application and adhered to. Periodic review with interested parties will be necessary.
• promote through education and access the multiple uses of ancient woodland and woodland products
• encourage the management of woodland to ensure age diversity, a species-rich ground flora and a variety of management types, such as high forest, coppice, coppice-with-standards and wood pasture
• promote the planting of locally indigenous species only, of local provenance where possible
• encourage the provision of better surfaced rights of way, to encourage greater use of the rights-of-way network. Consider separate provision for pedestrians and equestrians
• consider the provision of small, low-key car parks to improve access to the footpath network