A summary of the Healthy Trees for Tomorrow Project which aimed to gain a better understanding of the number, age distribution and health of trees on commons. We are sharing three survey reports from the commons we surveyed, including: Harford and Ugborough Moor (South Dartmoor), Holne Moor (East Dartmoor), Walkhampton Common (West Dartmoor). 

This report outlines the results of a trial to control Molinia (Purple Moor Grass) and increase the abundance of blanket bog species. The trial flattened 5 ha of Molinia dominated blanket bog with low ground pressure diggers.

This management plan looks ahead to managing Hartford and Ugborough Commons over the next 20 or 30 years. The work programme identifies and proposes work to improve the condition of the commons and the public benefits they provide, including the condition required by the Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and the two Premier Archaeological Landscapes (PALs). This management plan is written primarily for the owners of the commons and the farmers whose livestock graze the common. 

This study aimed to establish a baseline for dung beetle population in two Common Land areas and associated inbye lands, with a methodology designed for future monitoring. Key objectives included assessing species diversity and abundance compared to a control site and understanding the impact of current livestock management practices on dung beetle populations.

Data was collected over three years (2021 - 2023) from 15 farms who graze livestock on Dartmoor Common Land. The aim of the research was to highlight the true cost of grazing livestock on the common and inform future Agri-environment intervention rates. Authors: Mark Fogerty, Duchy College Rural Business School and Tracy May.

The Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority Farm Conservation Team compiled a Farmer-Led Habitat Assessment process for commoners to assess the quality and quantity of various special and specific habitats on Ingleborough. As Ingleborough is an SSSI, it is paramount that the farmers have the right data to support ongoing conversations with conservationists and those interested in the land. This report is the culmination of that work.

This report describes the results of a shepherding trial on Stiperstones during the grazing seasons of 2021 and 2022. After first observing where the sheep and cattle naturally grazed, in the second year, the shepherd actively moved the sheep to areas less grazed. Despite the very hot summer and drought of 2022 making the trial more challenging, this report sets out several other factors affecting the sheep grazing patterns on the Stiperstones.

Following the Brant Fell Archaeology survey and the Yellowhammer bird habitat survey, a Natural Flood Management Report was scoped to reduce flood risk to Sedbergh from Brant Fell in the Yorkshire Dales. The report provided recommendations after input from commoners in the area, to ensure the most appropriate methods for the steep fell.

This report describes the background, considerations, methods and findings of the three years of research to establish why whinchats are in decline and to determine action to reverse this. This involved locating nests, monitoring broods, colour-ringing chicks, and recording habitat observations to make and trial bracken management recommendations.

This report describes the results of a survey carried out by Yorkshire Peat Partnership between February and March 2022.

The survey was carried out in 3 parts: an initial desk-based survey of aerial photographs, which helped make an initial assessment of the type of work that might be needed; the field survey, where information about the grips, gullies, hags and bare peat as well as the vegetation communities and peat depth is recorded onto a hand-held mapper; and a desk-based post survey of the area using a combination of the aerial photography and walkover survey data to classify erosion features.

Our Common Cause: Our Upland Commons was a landmark project that worked to conserve, enhance and broaden understanding of the cultural and natural heritage of commons and commoning in upland England, working in the Lake District, Dartmoor, the Yorkshire Dales and Shropshire Hills. Read the project’s executive summary.

This guide presents a set of principles of hill sheep husbandry but recognises that practice must be flexible, combining art and science, providing for particular sheep in particular places at particular times. The evolution of hill sheep husbandry is described and analysed as a set of key principles. The relationship between soils, vegetation, and grazing is examined, and an overview of the nutritional value of commonly grazed plants is provided. All aspects are illustrated by reference to science and development studies supported with illustrations.

This leaflet is available to download and has jointly been produced by AONBs, National Parks England, National Sheep Association, Foundation for Common Land, Dartmoor Commoners Council, New Forest Commoners Defence Association, Federation of Cumbria Commoners.

This toolkit provides 20 Fact Sheets and Guidance Notes. These documents provide practical guidance for those involved with common land, which remains under practical agricultural management by farmers and commoners. They can be used by practitioners seeking the sustainable management of commons to provide the widest possible range of public benefits.

This report investigates the state of commoning in Wales in 2015.

This report was commissioned by Natural England to provide an understanding of the extent, role and significance of pastoral commoning in England and to identify trends from which likely future scenarios can be predicted. 

This report examines the reasons for a very low uptake of agri-environment schemes on common grazings in Scotland, even though these are natural candidates for this type of scheme.

This 2013 report, commissioned by the Foundation for Common Land and supported by the European Forum for Nature Conservation and Pastoralism, examines the distribution and management of agri-environment scheme (AES) funds on common land across England.