FURY IN THE FOREST
‘Commoner’ families who help look after New Forest see rents soar from £500 to £2,000
IT is one of the most beautiful areas of Britain – 140,000 rolling acres of woodland, heaths and pastures inhabited by horses and ponies.
But the peace and tranquility of the New Forest has been shattered by a row over soaring rents for commoners who live in the area and have rights to allow animals to graze there.
Some rents for the 65 Crown properties in the idyllic district have rocketed from £500 up to £2,000. Residents say they are being charged ‘extortionate’ fees by Forestry England, which manages the homes.
For over a century the houses have been set aside for commoners – a group with ancient rights to allow horses, ponies and cattle to graze in the national park in Hampshire and Wiltshire.
The commoners claim their monthly rents previously ranged from £300 to £500 but shot up to between £1,450 and £2,000, making them ‘completely unaffordable’.
They fear a ‘whole generation’ of young commoners will be forced to leave the forest. Around 600 live in the New Forest where 7,000 horses, ponies and donkeys graze. They were granted special rights to roam their animals in the 13th century, with the Crown properties becoming available around 100 years ago.
The New Forest Commoners’ Defence Association (NFCDA) claims the rent increases have been imposed by Forestry England despite the Government stipulating they could only be set at 15 per cent of a commoner’s monthly income.
Most of those affected have jobs in the area and tend to animals in their spare time. Their average income is said to be well below the levels of the new rents – which can hit £24,000 a year.
The commoners have now written an open letter to Environment Secretary Michael Gove calling for him to investigate Forestry England’s conduct.
They accuse Forestry England of ‘a policy of covert exploitation and privatisation of Crown assets’.
Erika Dovey, 37, a mother- offour, said she is now unable to live in the New Forest as the rents are ‘unaffordable’. Instead, she lives outside and drives into the forest to access her ponies in Burley.
‘Commoning is a huge part of our life – it is 24/7, 365 days a year. We’re out every day looking after our animals,’ she said. ‘The grazing helps preserve the forest’s special habitat for thousands of species. It is so important.
‘This is the most unaffordable national park in the country and commoners just need a bit of help. We need to help young commoners who are struggling.
‘It would be great if rent could be set at a reasonable rate in line with what commoners actually earn. We don’t earn much money – we do it for the love of the forest.’
Commoners have highlighted Little New Park in Brockenhurst, a four-bedroom Forestry Englandmanaged property which was recently advertised for £1,450 rent per month.
NFCDA chairman Tony Hockley said: ‘It is nothing short of disgraceful that a public body should act in this way. This is a policy of covert exploitation and privatisation of Crown assets. As commoners we are each deeply committed to the New Forest, its past and its future. We have an active group of young commoners who are keen to continue the practice but are unable to rent a home close to the grazing.
‘A typical holding in the New Forest is now worth at least £1million to buy and £2,000 a month to rent, while local incomes remain low and the costs of keeping livestock rise.
‘It is tragic that the Crown holdings at the heart of the New Forest are now systematically being lost, and that a public body is not only defying ministerial policy but also pursuing a course of action that it knows can only cause lasting harm to this landscape.
‘The conflict between Forestry England’s national financial interests and the costs of supporting the grazing of the New Forest mean that the agency is unable to put the New Forest first.’
Mr Hockley added: ‘We have caught the commission [Forestry England] advertising cottages to the highest bidder, with no mention of grazing and allocating them to its own managers. Standing idly by whilst Forestry England misappropriates these Crown properties – so that tenancy is a matter of the income this Bruce forest precious said Rothnie, rather for – the will the landscape.’ group have than of conservation Forestry lasting the had good to consequences England, ‘balance of of Forest the of with caring traditions the for cost it’. of to the the New taxpayer for He affordable stressed: ‘I housing support and the need stay committed to maintaining our housing stock that offers different opportunities for rent by our own staff and practising commoners. ‘We play a vital role in the life of the New Forest and over the past 25 years have supported commoning by the way we manage land and our properties. ‘This includes substantial public subsidy to keep the benefits to commoning and maintaining the traditions of the New Forest.’
‘It is nothing short of disgraceful’