Hawridge and
Cholesbury Commons
Preservation Society

What is the HCCPS?

In 1967 a Commons Preservation Society was set up, with the co-operation of the Lord of the Manors, then John Randall, to protect the Commons, keep the paths and rides clear, preserve the Commons as a wildlife sanctuary, etc. Its rules and aims are unchanged since 1974, apart from the annual subscription. The society acts on behalf of the Lord of the Manors, advising, and occasionally warning transgressors. However, its main work is physical, controlling the vegetation on the Commons. Their natural state, ungrazed, would be dense woodland, principally oak, hawthorn, and bramble! An elderly tractor is used for mowing and bracken control (subscriptions help to pay for this equipment). Fortnightly Working Parties during the winter labour to keep paths and views open (help welcome - many hands make light work). A Newsletter is distributed to all members and potential members. The aims of the HCCPS also include an annual Social Occasion when members are able to meet up with one another.

The aims of the society

1. To protect the Commons, keep the footpaths and permissive rides clear and enhance the Commons' ecological value. (Where the "ecological value" is a measure of the significance or interest of an area of land as a habitat supporting species of flora and fauna.)
2. To preserve the Commons as a natural sanctuary for wildlife and, noting their special status as a Local Wildlife Site, to enhance their biodiversity. (Where "biological diversity" is the variety of life forms, the ecological roles they perform, and the genetic diversity they contain.)
3. To develop and implement the plan for the management of the Commons.
4. To keep the Commons clear of rubbish.
5. To keep a watching brief on matters related to legislation which may affect the Commons.
6. To give the Society's views to the appropriate person or body on any development which might affect the natural beauty of the area.
7. To hold an annual Social Occasion to enable members and others who live locally to get to know each other.

The rules of the society

1. Full membership of the Society will be restricted to Commoners and to those people living in Hawridge and Cholesbury, or with land adjoining the Commons.
2. People living outside Hawridge and Cholesbury may become members but will not have the right to vote.
3. The annual subscription will be £7.50
4. The Annual General Meeting will be held as soon after the 31st October as possible.
5. The Committee and Officers will be elected at the Annual General Meeting.
6. Only voting members may serve on the Committee.
7. The Committee will comprise a Chairman, Vice Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, and not more than seven Committee members. If more than seven members are nominated there will be an election.
8. The Chairman will not hold office for more than three consecutive years.

NEWSLETTERS

An occasional Newsletter is distributed to members and potential members of the Society. Copies of previous editions may be found here.

AGM MINUTES

The Annual General Meeting (AGM) of the Society usually takes place in December at Cholesbury Village Hall.

The minutes of Annual General Meetings are published here.

WALKS AND TALKS

Pond report July 03
Geology talk Sep 03
John Morris Tree Walk Jun 04

THE SUMMER PARTY

On a Saturday near to Midsummer's Day, the Hawridge & Cholesbury Commons Preservation Society organise the annual Summer Party. All the family is welcome - the event usually includes drinks and a meal along with games and activities for the children but the precise nature of the party changes from year to year. Details of the annual Summer Party are advertised in the Society's Newsletters and in the local magazine "Hilltop News". Volunteers are always welcome either for contributions to the feast or general help with the organisation - Look out for details in the Spring newsletters.

Contacts

You may contact the Society by email at:     hccps@cholesbury.com

What is Common Land?

It is uncultivated land over which certain people, who do not own the land, nevertheless have or have had, rights to graze animals, gather firewood, etc. Much of England and Wales used to be common, until the enclosures acts of the 18th and 19th centuries. On those commons which remain, the rights are normally attached to a property and sold with it. The landowner is likely to be a local council, or a body like the National Trust, but may be a private person. Unfortunately, there is no general right of access on rural common land (although all urban commons 'were given to the people' and are therefore open to the public). In about 1930, common land in England and Wales was registered, its ownership and the rights of the various commoners recorded. The Commons Registration Act 1965 required re-registration including confirmation of claims to rights of common, and set dates for appeals.

What about our local Commons?

Our villages lie within the Chiltern Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB). This was designated in 1965 with the primary aim of conserving the natural beauty of the regional landscape - not a simple task as pressures for development are forever increasing. The H&C Commons have also been designated as a Site of Special Importance for Nature Conservation (SINC) by the Buckinghamshire County Council. It is evident that we are custodians of something special - worth making the modest, but persistent, efforts required to keep it for future generations.

H&C Commons are privately owned, by the Lord of the Manors (of H&C). Their eastern boundary is the road from the top of Hawridge Hill down to Vale Farm (leading on to Heath End). The north and northeastern boundary runs along the valley from that road to Cholesbury Bottom and a little distance on the north of Shire Lane. On the west it runs to the beginning of Parrotts Lane and to the south across Rays Hill to Braziers End. Land running along the south side of the road from Hawridge Lane to Parrotts Lane, including that running down Rays Hill and up to Braziers End, is also part of the Commons. About two dozen households possess Commoners' Rights of various sorts. Cholesbury Common was last grazed in 1963, by George Brown, with special permission from the Lord of the Manors, since though he lived in Cholesbury he was not a commoner.

In 1938, an Order of Limitations under the Law of Property Act 1925 gave the public rights of access on foot "for air and exercise" (an early "right to roam" on Hawridge and Cholesbury Commons). Horse riders were permitted to ride along defined tracks along the top and bottom edges. Various restrictions were imposed on other activities. For instance, no bicycles may be ridden on the Commons. No Bridleways exist on the Commons, but the definitive Rights of Way map first prepared circa 1954 shows a set of footpaths (confusingly, all numbered as 48) criss-crossing the Commons. They correspond closely to the paths on a 1930s map owned by Christine Stott, the present Lord of the Manors. Though one may in general walk anywhere the vegetation allows, those footpaths must be kept clear. They often provide useful links between other rights of way to north or south of the Commons.

The Lord of the Manors' permission is necessary for any ground works anywhere on the Commons.

In 1997 the permissive horse tracks were modified and added to, to help keep horses off the cricket outfield and off the road. The notice board maps of the Commons, displayed at three points along the top, show the current horse routes, and detail the regulations.

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