Woodland Management: Greave Primary

Historically woodlands were used for raw material of furniture, fuel for cooking and heat, construction, tools and industry. Therefore woodlands were managed in order to produce as much wood as possible. The process for doing this is called coppicing, where trees are cut leaving the root system in place. This resulted in a quicker natural regeneration of species, due to the energy contained in the roots. This didn’t work for all tree species - for example Oak, which were left as standards and were allowed to grow into mature trees for timber. This is where coppicing with standards came about, which is where species including hazel and ash were coppiced and oak were left as standards.

Historically woodlands were segregated with different species in different parts; this allowed each segment to be harvested in rotation rather than temporarily wiping out a whole eco-system. To preserve nature they also ensured there was a corridor for wildlife. This system also created whole areas of natural light in the woodland which in turn encouraged wildflowers to blossom and their associated insects.

Greave School’s grounds are currently maintained by an outside company who come in to mow the grass.

Pruning takes place on areas next to footpaths and playing fields, and larges branches /trees are felled when obstructing clear passages or when damaged by storms.

It is now important to start managing the site more sustainably, by coppicing trees properly (in autumn) where desired and thinking about how we are using the woodland and how we can help it to flourish for future education and enjoyment.

There are paths that are mowed through a part of the Forest School area.

Branches that are deemed dangerous are removed from trees and left on the ground in a suitable place, as part of an ecosystem for plants and animals on the floor.

There is a tree stump (1metre high 20cm diameter) that is left and has moss and lichen on, allowing children to see what happens naturally as it decomposes and leads a different life.

In preparation for a fire, overhanging branches are removed.

There are a selection of trees arranged in a wild configuration allowing smaller saplings to grow alongside a variety of field layer shrubs and plants.

This system is currently sustainable with the size of the trees at present but it may be required to change in the future as trees increase in size.

General woodland management techniques at present are influenced by the traditional method of coppicing. Although the woodland is now looked as a whole eco-system and trees are managed to ensure there is regeneration of all the vertical layers in the woodland. The demand for wood is not as great as it has been in the past, therefore less than ¼ of the trees in the country are coppiced in the traditional method; with some areas not using the method at all. The general use of woodlands today has changed significantly with them being used for leisure purposes and for conservation – ensuring there is biodiversity as well as guaranteeing they are accessible for the general public. Today woodlands are managed in line with health and safety, rather than to regenerate trees.

Ecological Effects on Greave's Forest School

Environmental Policy and Environmental Impact Assessment

We aim to engender a high level of respect for the natural world and encourage all to be involved in decisions about their environment and safety. The following is an Ecological Impact Matrix. This is used for planning sessions and thinking about how each of these can be minimalised.

Area Impacted on
Activity	Ground Layer	Field Layer	Shrub Layer	Canopy Layer	Invertebrates	Soil and water	Nesting birds	Small mammals
Trampling	May damage	May disturb	May disturb		May damage habitat/ creature	May wear down soil	May disturb	May damage habitat/ creature
Mini-beast / scavenger hunt	May damage	May damage	May disturb		May damage habitat/ creature	May wear down soil	May disturb	May damage habitat/ creature
Shelter building	May wear / damage deadwood supplies	May disturb	May disturb	May damage lower levels/  lower branches rested on	May disturb	May disturb	Noise and vibration may disturb	Noise and vibration may disturb
Campfire	May damage deadwood supplies for fuel	Pit area may disturb	Pit area may disturb	Smoke may disturb	May disturb	May disturb in pit: heat/ extra water to extinguish fire	Smoke may disturb	Smoke may disturb
Coppicing (maintenance and health and safety)	May wear away / benefit from natural light	May disturb / benefit from natural light	May disturb / benefit from natural light	May damage	May disturb	May disturb	May damage habitats	May disturb
Toilet (indoor toileting so N/A)

Activity Impact Mitigation

On site activities, such as fires, will follow practices that minimise impact on wildlife through being mindful of what is burnt and how any residues are disposed of. Before leaving a site we will ensure that any litter is collected, removed from the site and disposed of suitably.

Collecting Wood: Dead wood is important to any woodland ecology as it has a multitude of uses, from homes for mini beasts to beds for fungi, so a lack of it is bad for any woodland habitat.

·         Limit the frequency of fires and evaluate the amount of dry, dead wood before having a fire. Collect only the minimum amount required for any given fire.

·         Reserve specific areas specifically for the conservation of dead wood.

Fires: Changes in soil chemistry can lead to increases in PH levels, carbon, phosphorous, etc. which can be harmful to some plants, whilst other essential nutrients may be depleted.

Fire can travel underground to roots even after appearing to be extinguished.

•                    Designate fixed locations for fires on parts of the site that aren’t particularly ecologically interesting or unique.

•          If possible, dispose of ash into patches of nettles.

•          Ensure that all fires are extinguished fully before leaving a site.

•          Where needed, use a fire wok to contain fire.

Cooking: Food waste may attract animals to the site or increase numbers of certain species, potentially leading to adverse changes in biodiversity.

·         Inform participants of these impacts and provide a container (to be taken away) or an ecologically sound place for food disposal.

Tree Climbing, Shelter Building and Swings: - damage to trees.

·         Restrict these activities to suitable trees that will tolerate them.

Collecting: Natural Damage to plants

·         Inform groups as to which types of plants are more sensitive to losing their leaves or flowers than others and different seasons affect this too, plants are best to pick, if any.

·         Ensure leaves or flowers are taken from fallen parts where possible.

·         Limit the frequency of this type of activity.

·         Leave plants unpicked whenever picking is not necessary.

  

Sustainable procurement

Greave Primary School’s Forest School (PGP – FS) holds environmental sustainability as a core value. We understand that the choices we make as buyers and consumers are a large part of our footprint and therefore strive to take this into account in our purchases. As far as possible we will buy items which are produced: as locally as possible; organically; from sustainable or renewable sources; ethically, with regards to environment, and workers’ and animal welfare; and with minimum packaging.

My new school's site survey

After moving schools I had to carry out a new site survey - which, being the second time I was doing one, was slightly easier.
Phase One Survey

Name of wood / site	Location	Grid reference
Greave Primary School	Forest in the Dip	Lat: 53.423629 Lng: -2.0860436
Owner
Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council Address : Werneth Road, Woodley, Stockport SK6 1HR, United Kingdom Tel: +44 161 430 6318
Other identified stakeholders
Staff, pupils, parents and governors of Greave Primary School.
General Description: Landscape context / topography (geographical location and features e.g. alongside river, steep slopes etc…)
‘Forest in the Dip’ ·         Location is within the grounds of Greave Primary school.  ·         Forest school site runs parallel to the length of the school’s large playing field ·         There are a mixture of 5-6 species of trees ·         There is a mixture of 4-5 shrubs ·         There is a combination of field grass and couch grass ·         Access to the site is through the play equipment part of the playground ·         On one side of the site there is fencing onto the back gardens of residential housing. ·         There are no water hazards within the vicinity. ·         There are no public rights of way on the site. Woodland description Flora Trees ·         Small woodland area ·         Scots Pine ·         Silver Birch ·         Birch ·         Hazel ·         Willow ·         Alder ·         Pine ·         Oak ·         Conifers (on boundary) Plants ·         Brambles ·         Black thorn ·         Hawthorn ·         Forsythia ·         Ivy Fungi ·         Coral spot fungus ·         Common Stinkhorn ·         Hypholoma fasciculare Sulphur Tuft ·         Bracket fungus – smoky polypore Mosses ·         Grey crust lichen ·         Caloplaca suaedae (orange colour) ·         Creeping Feather-moss - Amblystegium serpens ·         Cylindric Ditrichum - Ditrichum cylindricum Fauna Birds ·         Black headed gulls ·         Herring gulls ·         Jackdaws ·         Pied wagtail ·         Yellow wagtail ·         Robin ·         Thrush ·         Wood pigeon ·         Stock dove Mammals ·         rabbit ·         hedgehog ·         wood mouse ·         grey squirrel ·         fox Insects ·         Peacock butterfly ·         Seven-spot ladybird ·         Green shield bug ·         Comma butterfly Abiotic elements Water No major water hazards on site Site can retain some water after heavy rain Soil Clay based – heavy soil – retains water Bedrock / Surface rock Forest surface is grass has no rock. Archaeological considerations (if present) None present Management history of site (e.g. when was the wood established, previous uses etc…) Established at the time of the school being built in 1969. There are willow trees there in order to help with excess water running down from the field and the hill beyond. Prior to the school being on the site, the site was just fields for farming. Long term vision Continue to manage in the same way – keeping it accessible but not neat and tidy so there is nothing to discover and explore in. Enhance by ensuring the site is not accessed by people from outside of school at weekends and in holidays – there is currently some evidence of possibly teenagers coming in. Perhaps acquire a wider variety of trees for the far end and to build up along the perimeter fence – allowing us to research appropriate trees and plan what would be the most appropriate –hence developing the children’s understanding of the area. Develop habitats further: Create bug hotels and rotting wood piles Introduce other grasses and field level plants to reduce the area where it floods. Ensure that all branches are not removed from the site – unless they are deemed dangerous – but left where they fall. Develop a permanent area for our fire circle. Develop links with the wider community to share the area and raise the profile of the benefits of Forest School.