91 - Yardley-Whittlewood Ridge : Description

Physical and functional links to other National Character Areas

The Yardley Whittlewood Ridge National Character Area (NCA) is a broad, low and gently undulating limestone plateau that is elevated above the lower lying Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire Claylands NCA to the south and east, and the Northamptonshire Vales NCA along its north-westerly extent. It abuts the Northamptonshire Uplands and Cotswolds NCAs in the south-west.

The elevated topography creates a physical boundary between the catchments of the River Nene to the north and the River Great Ouse to the south. Water is shed into the main watercourses of the rivers Til, Tove and Kym before reaching the Nene and Great Ouse where it travels through the Northamptonshire Vales, the Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire Claylands and The Fens NCAs and out into the Wash estuary. The River Great Ouse rises in this NCA, near Brackley, and the River Kym/Til rises near Wymington (Bedfordshire). An aquifer supplying water for public, agricultural, horticultural and industrial use within this and in adjacent NCAs lies under the limestone in the western part of the NCA. The Grand Union Canal cuts through where the River Tove dissects the ridge, functionally linking it to the Northamptonshire Vales and the Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire Claylands NCAs.

The gently sloping land offers views of both the NCA itself and adjacent NCAs. Good views of the Ridge and its well-wooded character can be seen from the A509 near Olney and in the Tove river valley. The Ridge lies between the major towns of Northampton and Milton Keynes and is crossed by numerous roads. Major transport routes run north-south through this NCA, including the M1 and the A5, and the West Coast and Midlands main line railways. The NCA offers numerous recreational opportunities for nearby urban communities, including two National Cycle Routes and an extensive rights-of-way network.

The Yardley Whittlewood Ridge today

The Yardley Whittlewood Ridge is a limestone plateau, which is more noticeable in the south-west as it rises steadily from the adjacent low-lying claylands. From its gently undulating top, the land slopes away in most directions giving long views over the surrounding countryside. This gives a feeling of being elevated, of openness and expansiveness. The views are frequently interrupted by the large blocks of woodland which are a characteristic and distinctive feature of the area.

The underlying geology and subsequent drifts of boulder clay deposited after the last ice age give rise to soils that are variable and shallow and range from a free-draining chalky till to less permeable clay. The east and west sides of the Ridge have particularly heavy clay soils, mostly neutral but occasionally acidic and more calcareous in nature. The soils in the river valley are generally more waterlogged. Agricultural development has historically been constrained so that much of the area remained wooded and most of the non-arable land is of low quality and supports pasture.

The Ridge is a generally well-wooded landscape throughout with a patchwork of deciduous and coniferous woodland, mature species-rich hedgerows, veteran trees, wood pasture and parkland that stem from the former Royal Hunting Forests of the 13th century. The planting of conifers has formed dense plantations in some areas, but a sense of history is maintained by the still extensive ancient semi-natural broadleaved woodland, which has networks of rides and occasional open grasslands (‘forest lawns’), containing typical species such as oak, ash and field maple, with birch and aspen present locally.

The area contains many nationally important sites for nature conservation and Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), for example Odell Great Wood, Yardley Chase and Salcey Forest. These are designated for their rich ancient woodland flora and species of breeding woodland birds, bats, scarce species of butterfly, such as the white admiral, wood white, purple emperor and white-letter hairstreak, moths such as the four-spotted and specialist deadwood beetles. There are also remaining scattered examples of lowland meadow and flood plain grazing marsh, both reduced and fragmented habitats nationally and locally, such as Yelden Meadows and Dungee Corner Meadow. These support rich assemblages of flora, including green-winged orchids, and are supplemented by other areas of unimproved grassland that occur as discrete agricultural fields, along woodland rides, roadside verges and green lanes that are particularly characteristic of north Bedfordshire. The minor roads are bounded by mature hedgerows and wide verges which are often species rich. The hedges themselves are generally species rich with suckering elms and hedgerow trees of mature oak and ash.

This well-wooded, mature landscape is predominantly used for agriculture with a mix of arable, mixed and pastoral farming in medium-sized fields bounded by mature hedgerows. It supports a wide range of farmland birds. Pasture and livestock (cows and sheep) are visible in the west with cereals such as wheat more prevalent in the east.

The Ridge forms a low watershed between the catchments of the River Nene to the north and the River Great Ouse to the south. There is an aquifer supplying water for public, agricultural, horticultural and industrial use under the limestone in the western part of the NCA. The absence of major watercourses along the ridge results in wetland habitats being largely restricted to the river valleys and around the Grand Union Canal. The rivers of the NCA are in their upper reaches, gently meandering and generally of good quality. The upper River Great Ouse and its tributaries the Tove and Til/Kym have a characteristic pool and riffle nature supporting species both of fast flowing water and those of deeper, slower water. Further downstream the River Great Ouse is a typical lowland river, slow flowing and clear. The catchment is known for its flood potential following intense rainfall due to impermeable clay soils.

The Ridge has a high feeling of tranquillity due to its sparse population, a lack of major settlements and the minor roads network which contribute to its rural character. The NCA has a number of Listed Buildings and Scheduled Ancient Monuments that add to its sense of place and history. For example, Yielden (or Yelden) Castle, a motte-and-bailey site, is one of the finest examples in Bedfordshire. The high number of large, well-managed estates with historic country houses and associated parkland landscapes, for example Castle Ashby, Stoke Park and Hinwick House, also give a sense of a well-managed, mature historic landscape. The remaining areas of wood pasture and parkland not only give a sense of place and history, they support specialist species of invertebrates and lower plants that rely on mature and veteran trees. Yardley Chase, for example, has the largest number of veteran oak trees anywhere in Northamptonshire and some of the veteran oaks in Salcey are believed to be over 500 years old.

The Yardley Whittlewood Ridge NCA is sparsely populated and has relatively few small settlements, mostly along the edges of the Ridge. Towcester, a busy small town, lies on the north-west edge of the area and Brackley, a rapidly expanding town, lies to the west. A strong sense of place is reinforced by the use of locally quarried limestone for local buildings, especially churches. The soft local oolitic limestone, ranging in colour from warm greys to subdued ochres, is frequently used with grey slate or red pantile roofing, resulting in a number of attractive limestone villages with a unified built character. Steep thatched roofs also occur, more frequently towards the east of the NCA, and mixtures of materials are also present including red-brick houses with limestone frontages.

A more suburban feel in parts of the NCA is the result of facilities catering for occasional large numbers of visitors, such as Silverstone and Santa Pod racetracks, as well as other recreational facilities such as golf courses, parks and museums. While the majority of roads are minor, there are major transport routes (both road and rail dissect the area) and communication masts on higher ground, and land use changes around villages to accommodate horse paddocks. All of this has affected the tranquillity of the area.

Quiet recreation is generally associated with historic houses, parkland and woodland sites such as Salcey and Whittlewood forests. There is one National Nature Reserve – Buckingham Thick Copse is privately owned and managed under a nature reserve agreement. Access is by permit only. There is an extensive right-of-way network and two National Cycle Routes (Route 6 connects London to the Lake District and a branch of Route 5 connects Reading to Birmingham via Chester).

The landscape through time

The underlying geology consists of sedimentary rocks from the Jurassic Period, overlain by drifts of sands, gravels and till (boulder clay) varying in thickness deposited during the ice age (Quaternary Period). The Ridge, formed of limestone from the Great Oolite Group, is tilted gently to the south-east. It is more elevated and distinct in the west, reaching 150 metres, than in the east where it dips to 80 metres. It is approximately 10 km wide at its widest point, 2.5 km at its narrowest. The oldest rocks belong to the Lower Jurassic Lias Group and are comprised of marine clays, limestones and sandstones, exposed where rivers and streams have cut through the overlying limestone, for example near Towcester. Overlying this is limestone and clay from the Middle Jurassic that forms the Inferior and Great Oolite. The clays and sandy limestone of the Great Oolite occur as a broad swathe through the central part of Northamptonshire, creating the elevated undulating landscape. In the east, small areas of Cornbrash Formation (a term used to refer to the upper portion of the Great Oolite) occur, overlain by Kellaways and Oxford Clay formations. The extensive areas of drift material soften the landform and influence soil type.

The soils are variable and shallow, ranging from a free-draining chalky till to less permeable clay. Slowly permeable, slightly acid loamy and clayey soils are dominant in the west, dictating the distribution of arable and pasture. The east and west sides of the Ridge have particularly heavy clay soils. On steeper slopes and in wetter areas bordering streams and rivers, remnant woodland, improved and semi-improved pastures and unimproved species-rich grassland are found. On gently undulating and sloping land, cereal cultivation is notable. The nature of the soils has deterred widespread woodland clearance and constrained agricultural development so that much of the area remains wooded. Where the Ridge is dissected by the River Tove, the river has eroded the boulder clay and deposited alluvium (clay, silt and sand). Limestone has been quarried locally and used in buildings, especially churches, and where sand and gravel are found, near Bozeat, they are being extracted.

Evidence of prehistoric settlement exists at Salcey Forest where ringworks, possibly of iron-age origin, can be found and there are a number of moated sites also indicating early settlement. Roman influences are linked to major routes crossing the Ridge which ran through two Roman settlements to the north of the area. Watling Street (now the A5) ran from London to Towcester and another route passed through Irchester northwards. A Roman villa is thought to exist south-east of Stokegap Lodge near Stoke Bruerne. Early settlement patterns persist through the continued use of these Roman roads and settlement locations.

In the 13th century, the establishment of Royal Forests laid the foundation for the nucleated settlement patterns which survives today. The woodlands of Whittlewood, Salcey and Yardley Chase provided important sources of fuel and building materials as well as hunting grounds for the nobility. Consequently, the area avoided the intensive clearance of woodland seen elsewhere. Small ‘forest villages’ located on the edge of the forest were established, with residents having limited woodland rights to access the forest for grazing and fuel. Limited fragments of ridge and furrow remain and in many of the woodlands the old woodbanks and ditches are well preserved.

Areas of the Royal Forest were subsequently taken into the estates of the Dukes of Grafton around the 16th century and suffered piecemeal clearance, with some areas removed entirely. Numerous historic houses, estates and associated parklands such as Castle Ashby, Stoke Park and Hinwick House were established and remain to date. Woodland clearance accelerated with the Parliamentary Enclosure Acts in the late 18th century and became more rapid in the early 19th century, particularly in the south-east between Brackley and Whittlewood Forest, and north of Whittlewood between the A5 and the M1. Estate farmsteads, either isolated or adjacent to villages, relate to these later periods of enclosure. References to large forests around Melchbourne, Odell and Knotting are historic, as large-scale woodland clearance resulted in isolated woodland blocks, loss of hedgerows and larger arable fields.

The poet and hymn writer William Cowper lived at Olney in the 18th century. He walked the woods and changed the direction of nature poetry by writing about everyday life and the English countryside. Wordsworth particularly admired his poem ‘Yardley Oak’, a tribute to a veteran landmark tree on Yardley Chase.

The First and Second World Wars saw forestry production change to create a strategic reserve of timber, with many areas of deciduous woodland replanted or supplemented with conifers. Numerous examples exist, but Yardley Chase in particular had large areas of woodland replanted. It also contains numerous redundant concrete military ammunition bunkers surrounded by water-filled moats and earthbanks that were used to store bombs during the Second World War. The ponds are now important for great crested and palmate newts. The site was connected by a branch of the Northampton-Bedford railway line, evidence of which remains. Parts of the site are still used by Army, Navy and Air cadets, as well as the Territorial Army, for training and it is closed to the public.

A shift from pasture to arable since the Second World War has resulted in the loss or fragmentation of lowland meadows. Similarly, areas of flood plain grazing marsh have been drained for agricultural improvement. Semi-improved grasslands show a long-term decline and while there has been some shift from cereals to livestock, implying a less intensively farmed landscape, a growing dominance of arable production has led to some hedgerows being removed to increase field size for modern agricultural equipment. Dutch elm disease resulted in the widespread loss of hedgerow trees, although many now have suckering elm. Areas of dense conifer plantations are undergoing restoration and many areas, especially those owned and managed by the Forestry Commission, are being managed for multiple social, economic and environmental benefits.

Due to its elevation, the Ridge is a chosen location for telecommunications masts with several visible in the landscape. The area’s proximity to Northampton and Milton Keynes has led to development pressure in the villages and nearby towns. There has also been an increase in demand for leisure and recreational opportunities. Recreational use of the area, such as walking, cycling and riding in the woodlands, along the Grand Union Canal and at fixed venues such as at Silverstone Circuit and Santa Pod Raceway, is high, and has led to improvements in the road infrastructure (A43 and M1 upgrades) and visitor facilities and to subtle land use changes adjacent to settlements as pasture is converted to paddocks.