Culture in Common has come together with the Young Commoners Committee and the New Forest Heritage Centre to commission this photograph, taken by BBC & Netflix wildlife photographer, Sam Stewart. ‘It Takes a Forest’ portrays some of the many individuals and organisations involved in protecting the animals of the forest and maintaining the commoning tradition. Commoning will increasingly evolve as those who practice it balance it with other jobs, but they will always be a close-knit community rooted in teamwork, neighbourliness and a shared love for the New Forest.
See below for ‘It Takes a Forest’, and a deeper dive into all the people involved:
- The Pony (Buttslawn Celestial)
The pony in this photograph is a kept Pony, but most New Forest Ponies are semi-feral, free-roaming and are the responsibility of Commoners. They are what makes this place so special, connect us to the past, shape the present, and carry the New Forest’s legacy forward.
- Young Commoners
Daisy Slocombe is Chair of the Young Commoners and Ines Mitchell is a committee member and owner of the Pony in the picture. Young Commoners, all under the age of 40, are vital to securing a future for the Forest. Through educational events and walks and talks they strive to protect and enhance this unique right.
- Forestry England
Leanne Sargeant, Charlotte Belcher, Tess Cook and Craig Harrison: Forestry England manages 47% of the New Forest National Park overseeing woodlands, wetlands, heathlands, to tracks and car parks. Forestry England helps to inform, enforce and educate people about not petting or feeding the ponies, provide Commoner housing, support the Verderers, and help manage drifts. Livestock, such as the commoners’ grazing animals, shape the New Forest, sustaining many species such as marsh club moss, dung beetles and nail fungus.
- Commoners
Lyndsey, Robert and Milly Stride are Commoners. Commoners can have a variety of rights over common land, ranging from grazing rights to less common rights to firewood. For the Strides and many others, this is a full, family way of life, often practiced for generations.
- Grazing Scheme Administrator
Tina Woodley, Administrator of the Grazing Scheme (which helps to make commoning viable), liaises with commoners about events which make up the commoning year.
- Verderer
Robert Stride is a Verderer. The Verderers’ Court is an ancient legal institution established to regulate and protect the interests of commoners.
- New Forest District Council
Councillor Dan Poole is an elected member of New Forest District Council – whose ward lies entirely within the New Forest National Park boundary. Dan supports initiatives which foster a strong sense of place, and healthy and enriching lifestyles for residents and visitors. NFDC are supporting the CDA with their case for recognising the New Forest Commoners as a ‘national minority’ under the Council of Europe’s Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (FCNM).
- East Boldre Community SpeedWatch
Bev Hawker volunteers with East Boldre Community SpeedWatch, a group formed in response to local residents’ concerns over road safety due to speeding motorists – a significant factor in the deaths of commoners’ animals each year.
- New Forest Association
Gale Pettifer is the Vice-Chairman of the New Forest Association, the second-oldest conservation organisation in Britain. It was founded in 1867 to protect the Forest from enclosure and preserve its unique character.
- New Forest Heritage Centre
Angus Harley is the Director of the New Forest Heritage Centre – a charity founded in 1979 by local people who wanted to build a centre where local people and visitors could discover more about the new Forest, its history, its customs, its people, its wildlife and its future. You can discover all about the life of the New Forest pony at the Centre.
- New Forest Trust
William Ziegler is the Chair of the New Forest Trust – a charity founded in 2003 to secure the wellbeing of the New Forest. The Trust encourages donations which go towards grants for worthy projects such as tackling the lack of affordable housing for Commoners – a problem which threatens the future of this vital activity.
- Chartered Surveyor
Oliver Cook is a rural practice-chartered surveyor. He helps commoners, farmers and rural businesses work with the uniqueness of the Forest for the benefit of themselves, their customers and the landscape.
- Farrier
Luke Blomfield is a Farrier (trims and shoes ponies’ hooves to keep them healthy) and a Committee Member of the New Forest Pony Breeding and Cattle Society, which encourages high-quality breeding by maintaining stud books, issuing passports, and organising events including the Beaulieu Road Pony Auctions.
- Commoners Defence Association
Andrew Parry-Norton is Chairman of the Commoners Defence Association. This invaluable association protects the act and culture of commoning. It is a vital body for sharing challenges and opportunities amongst its members, and for advocating for the protection and understanding of this ancient activity.
- Police Community Support Officer
PCSO Richard Williams is a Police Community Support Officer responsible for the New Forest Neighbourhoods Policy Team, based at Lyndhurst. His team runs ‘Operation Mountie’, a Speed Enforcement and Education programme which aims to reduce the number of animal accidents on Forest roads.
- Tourist
Keith Melville lives in Sussex and has been visiting the New Forest with his family for over 40 years. He stays at different New Forest campsites, is passionate about visitors enjoying the Forest respectfully, and understands the way the landscape is managed. He never feeds the ponies.
- Head Agister
Jonathan Gerrelli is the Head Agister. There are 5 Agisters in total – each with their own ‘haunt’. They are responsible for all Forest stock (cattle, ponies, donkeys, pigs and sheep) around the clock and are employed by the Verderers.
- New Forest National Park Authority
Gillie Molland is the Ranger Services Manager for the New Forest National Park Authority. Rangers help care for the New Forest by engaging with the public to increase understanding of its natural beauty, biodiversity and cultural heritage. Rangers encourage responsible enjoyment of the National Park through promoting the New Forest code and in particular, keeping a distance from the animals and not feeding or petting them.
- Vet
Alex Crook is a vet who works alongside commoners and agisters to promote the health and welfare of all stock. Alex has done much research into common cattle diseases which can affect the Forest and provides vital advice and guidance on these and many other important matters.
