Forestry Commission Consultation Hub

Forestry England manages Bedgebury National Pinetum and Forest - Park Lane is a section of public highway, private road and forest track that transects the forest. Over recent years the displaced parking has become unsustainable and has created incidents of unsafe parking, legitimate road users have had their access blocked, including the emergency services. We consulted residents and neighbours on Park Lane and presented three options to address the current situation for a wider consultation.

There were 386 responses to the survey; 8% were from residents or local businesses on Park Lane, 43% were from residents of Hawkhurst Parish, 26% of Cranbrook & Sissinghurst and 6% of Goudhurst. The remaining 17% were from none of the above. The most popular option was number 3 - to regulate parking, potentially with a locally administrated pass. 61% of respondents chose this option and a further 30% said that they would support this option even though it was not their first choice – a combined total of 91%. Furthermore, 59% said that this option was fair to all user groups. 

Following this survey, with a good representation from each parish as well as different user groups, Forestry England will move ahead with plans to regulate parking.

Forestry England Park Lane parking consultation - full results

Members of the public and stakeholders were invited to the consultation of the draft proposals for the Broughton Moor Forest Plan 2020-2030, to leave feedback to ensure that the plans objectives and proposals were considered and balanced. This was carried out via emails and notices displayed at forest entrances. 

There were a handful of responses to the consultation from members of the public, with most supporting the main forest management objectives. The main concerns raised include the following:

-The impact of larch felling in Broughton Moor 

-Demand for mountain biking facilities in Broughton Moor

-Questions around Public Right of Way maintenance

-Concerns around illegal motorbike access

Comments and feedback were incorporated into the Forest Plan where necessary.

The concern around the impact of larch felling in Broughton Moor is understandable given the prominence of this species in areas of the forest, particularly around The Hawk. The issuing of a statutory plant health notice and the ongoing threat to the larch trees in the area necessities that we act now, to reduce the risk to other trees in the area. In addition, the planned restocking containing a higher proportion of broadleaves when compared to the previous plan aims to reduce the landscape impact in the long term that losing the larch will cause.

Creation of cycle trails is outside of the scope of this forest management plan, however the feedback for additional cycling provision has been passed onto the recreation team for their consideration. Grizedale is Forestry England’s hub for mountain biking and supports numerous trails. There are no formal cycle paths or trails in Broughton Moor.

We remain committed to monitoring illegal motorbike activity in Broughton Moor and will continue to liaise with the police regarding this matter.

The Public Rights of Way within Broughton Moor are the responsibility of the National Park authority to maintain, and these comments have been passed onto the appropriate staff there.

This forest plan has now been submitted to the Forestry Commission for approval.

We asked people to provide feedback on proposed plans for some development work at Tyler's Wood. Thank you for your responses.

There was a positive response to the consultation. The majority of respondents supported the development of more wildflowers, pathways, trees, a pond and additional seating. There was a strong interest in ensuring our forest wildlife continues to thrive and that the benefits of our forests will continue for generations to come. The majority of respondents stay up to date with our sites through the Facebook page (Thames Chase Woodlands - Forestry England) and notice boards on the site. We will continue to use these platforms and keep them up to date. There was some interest in volunteering on this project. We will continue to review Covid-19 guidance and advertise for volunteers if and when we feel it is safe to do so.

Comments and feedback have been reviewed and incorporated into the development plan for Tyler's Wood. Thank you for taking the time to complete this questionnaire.