Dartmoor National Park Authority
29 September 2009
Traditional coppice training in Dartmoor’s heritage hazel woodland
Enjoy a day in the ancient hazel woods of Dartmoor and learn about the traditional art of coppice at a one-day workshop this autumn. Once common all over Dartmoor, coppice woodlands provide a truly sustainable source of food, shelter and raw materials for people and wildlife. Today, we have almost none left. The Sustainable Coppice Partnership has been set up to revive and revitalise coppicing in Devon for the benefit of wildlife and people, and to make heritage products for today’s consumers. The project aims to inform, educate and train people in traditional coppice skills and to create opportunities for new sustainable rural jobs and new sustainable woodlands for future generations to use and enjoy.
In particular, the Partnership aims to revive the local market for thatching materials worth over £150,000 a year in Devon alone, currently supplied by 44-tonne lorries all the way from Eastern Europe. Renewed interest in local, high-quality heritage products and the demands of climate change legislation means that low-quality imports – with very little difference in price, if any – are no longer the best option for business or consumers, and certainly not the environment.
Many people now recognise the value of local, environmentally-friendly products. Others are interested in learning the skills needed to make them.
Open to everyone, the one-day taster workshops are designed for complete beginners but may be of interest to those with some knowledge of woodland conservation and management. The workshops provide a practical introduction to coppicing with hands-on skills training in growing and harvesting coppice using traditional methods.
The taster days are also an ideal introduction to our longer courses which can lead to accreditation for a career in coppice and greenwood working, and an opportunity to meet some of the skilled practitioners still working in the profession in Devon. The first workshops are being held at Dartmoor National Park Authority owned Sanduck Wood on October 18, October 25, November 22, and November 29 from 10am until 4pm each day.
The workshops are a great opportunity to try your hand at tree identification, harvesting hazel rods and making some of the traditional products made by the skilled woodsmen of Devon for hundreds of years before the Second World War and cheap imports took their toll on the people who made their living by these traditional rural crafts. The time is right to revitalise local production of these heritage products by professional practitioners, to regain their supremacy and realise the potential of coppice for the future.
To sign up for one of the taster days or to add your name to our mailing list for future events and training, or for more details contact Dr Tean Mitchell at the Devon Sustainable Coppice Partnership on 0845 458 1732 or 07970 116 525 or email tean@sustainablecoppice.org
The Devon Sustainable Coppice Partnership is supported by Dartmoor National Park Authority and the Dartmoor Sustainable Development Fund.
Ends
For further information from the Devon Sustainable Coppice Partnership
Dr Tean Mitchell
Tel: 0845 458 1732 or 07970 116 525
For further information from Dartmoor National Park Authority
Rupert Lane, Principal Trees and Woodlands Officer
Holly Tiffen, Sustainable Development Officer
Tel: (01626) 832093
Notes for Editors
Coppice – the practice of cutting all the stems of suitable tree species to ground level from where new shoots arise as straight, long rods which can be harvested after 5-10 years to make hurdles, thatching spars and other traditional and new greenwood products.
The Devon Sustainable Coppice Partnership is lead by Dr Tean Mitchell, a plant ecologist with wide experience of woodland conservation and training volunteers in the countryside, and Master Thatcher Adam Hyne, who trained with traditional heritage craftsmen in Devon using coppice and making coppice products, and has worked on heritage buildings on and off Dartmoor for over 20 years.
Dartmoor National Park Authority
The National Park Authority is supporting the project and recognises the importance of coppice and coppice materials in the maintenance of biodiversity in our woodlands and the sustainable supply of authentic materials to use in the conservation of important heritage buildings in Devon and Dartmoor.
Dartmoor Sustainable Development Fund
Dartmoor National Park Authority manages an annual fund of £280,000 through the Sustainable Development Fund. Sustainable development is governed by social, economic and environmental principles. The Fund has been set up through the Department of Environment Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). Projects demonstrating all three principles should get in touch with Holly Tiffen, Sustainable Development Officer, Dartmoor National Park Authority, to discuss the proposal and assess its suitability prior to submitting an online application. Telephone (01616) 831067 or email dsdf@dartmoor-npa.gov.uk. Potentially eligible projects include green buildings, recycling and re-use projects, community renewable energy schemes, local food projects and green tourism initiatives.
Return to Dartmoor National Park Authority Partnership Project News Releases
Page updated 29 September 2009
