2020 – 22 January HLS minutes
Summary
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| Voting Members | ||
|---|---|---|
| Lord Manners | OV | Official Verderer – Verderers of the New Forest (Chairman) |
| Bruce Rothnie | DS | Deputy Surveyor – Forestry England |
| Alison Barnes | AB | Chief Executive – New Forest National Park Authority |
| Non-Voting Members | ||
| Jenny Thomas | JT | Lead Adviser New Forest - Natural England (NE) |
| Robert Stride | RS | CDA Representative |
| In Attendance | ||
| Tina Woodley | TW | VGS Administrator |
| Sonia Lorenzo-Martin | SLM | Head of Planning and Environment – Forestry Commission |
APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE
Nick Wardlaw - HLS Contract Manager – Forestry England
Nick Wardlaw has recently moved to a position on the Recreation Team within Forestry England and will no longer be attending HLS board meetings. The board would like to extend their gratitude for the years of hard work and commitment to the HLS Scheme and wish him well in his new post.
DECLARATIONS OF INTEREST
OV is Chairman of the VGS Management Committee.
AB declared an interest in all Wetland Restoration projects because of the NPA’s responsibilities as local planning authority.
RS is a member of the VGS and a committee member of the CDA.
MATTERS ARISING FROM THE MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS MEETING Resume
Spider Survey
OV requested an update on the publication of the Spider survey. SLM agreed to send copy of report once it has been finalised.
Action SLM
successful projects that the HLS has helped fund over the past 10 years. The board members were impressed with the finished design. These leaflets have been given out to the public by the travelling HLS Rangers and include a pledge from the public to help fulfil the aims of the HLS. NPA will supply stocks of these leaflets to the partner organisations. AB requested feedback on the numbers required.
PROGRAMME AND SUMMARY Resume
The board studied the current programme register for the end of 2019 and the projected programme of projects for 2020 if this was to be the end of the agreement. As the decision has not yet been received on the potential roll-over of the current HLS scheme for 2020, the board agreed not to make any decisions regarding any potential underspend that may exist at the end of the scheme until formal notice has been received.
SLM noted that some amendments need to be made to the projected 2020 programme. JT requested that Holly Pollarding be added to the programme. The change in current legislation regarding the use of Asulox for spraying of bracken will require alternative methods of control.
Action SLM
FE UPDATE
The board studied the report supplied by FE for the Autumn/Winter 2019 period.
Wetland Restoration
All repairs at Shirley Holms Mire were completed and all restoration work at Pondhead has also been completed.
Terrestrial Restoration
SLM reported that the ridge and furrow work is well underway and proving successful. With 3 contractors available the project is able to cover more area and compare methods. The board requested a site visit before the April meeting. TW to arrange with SLM. JT invited the HLS partners to attend a NE hosted meeting in February covering climate change and carbon release. AB commented that the NFNPA have a paper going out to their members recommending that the NFNPA commit to develop plans with partners to address climate and nature emergencies. JT noted that it is a great opportunity to highlight how important the restored mires are for absorbing carbon.
DS informed the board that the climate expert from Forest Research, Mark Broadmeadow is addressing the Consultative panel on the evening of 5th March. He
contractors in October and agreed the format. SLM to follow up and report back to the board.
Action SLM
DS reported that he had been contacted by Southampton University. They have requested suggestions for possible projects or topics that they could develop as research bids.
ENGAGEMENT AND INTERPRETATION OFFICER WRITTEN UPDATE Resume
The board studied the report from the E & I Officer. AB shared with the board the outstanding winning and runners up photographs from the Micro Photography Competition. The competition received a good number of high-quality entries.
OV and DS requested a preview of the Wetland Videos that are planned for release in conjunction with World Wetlands Day.
Action AB
OV and JT requested TW forward the link to the HLS Commoning videos.
Action TW
HIWWT WRITTEN UPDATE Resume
The report from the New Forest Non-Native Plants Project was studied by the board. It was noted the astonishing amount of work and effort that is undertaken by the Coordinator and her team of volunteers. The board see this project as a massive success and great value for money.
NFLAS WRITTEN UPDATE Resume
The report from the NFLAS was studied. The board commented on the NFLAS’s success in securing previously unutilised land belonging to Exxon and making it available as back up grazing to commoners. AB requested the board consider future funding of the successful mentorship scheme that has previously been running under the OPOF project. The board felt it was a project worth consideration if a rollover was agreed.
LiDAR WRITTEN UPDATE Resume
The LiDAR zoomable maps have now been moved to a new server. Work has been completed to make them accessible again on the NPA website and to improve the user experience. OV to be notified when complete.
Action AB
FUTURE NEW FOREST ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP SCHEME UPDATE Resume
JT confirmed with the board that NE had recommended to the RPA in December that the New Forest HLS should be rolled over for 2020/21. The decision is now with the RPA. It is believed that the RPA will contact the Verderers directly with their decision. TW to notify the board immediately of the result. SLM spoke about the difficulty in retaining staff and not being able to recruit new staff to work on the HLS projects and
for the VGS small grant scheme. The project had been well subscribed in its final year and the requests exceeded the annual budget. After studying the cumulative spend by commoners towards improvement and development of their animal management systems and infrastructure the board agreed to the request. TW to inform the committee.
Action TW
AOB
Feeding Areas
The CDA requested that a representative from the CDA accompany NE, FE and the VGS Administrator on its annual feeding area inspection. TW to contact the CDA when a date has been arranged and for confirmation as to who will attend.
Action TW
Educational Access Annual Report
The board studied the annual report from the Educational Access team. In 2019 the HLS funding enabled 2,311 pupils from 41 schools to visit the New Forest National Park to learn about its special qualities. It was noted that for many schools the HLS funding makes the difference between being able to visit and not experiencing the Forest at all. The board also extended their best wishes to Sue Palma on her retirement and thanked her for all her hard work in supporting the HLS.
HLS AGM
The date of the HLS AGM was agreed as 6pm Wednesday 3rd June 2020. The location to be Minstead Village Hall and the format to be as last year. TW to book the hall and liaise with the HLS Contributors.
Action TW
Cycle Data Counters
JT requested information on the data received from the cycle counters that were installed at the beginning of the scheme. DS to investigate, and report at next Board meeting.
Retention of Fencing under FDP
DS asked the board to consider future HLS funding for fencing that is essential to stock management once the fence is no longer required to exclude stock from inclosures as planned within the Forest Design Plan. The board will consider this further if a rollover is agreed.
Action DS
Wednesday July 8th – 9am – Library
Wednesday October 7th – 9am - Annexe
| Delegated Actions to | ||
|---|---|---|
| Bruce Rothnie | DS | Deputy Surveyor – Forestry England |
| Tina Woodley | TW | VGS Administrator |
| Sonia Lorenzo Martin | SLM | Head of Planning and Environment – Forestry England |
| Alison Barnes | AB | Chief Executive – New Forest National Park Authority |
Lord Manners
Official Verderer
