Astonbury Wood - Our New Nature Reserve | Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust

Astonbury Wood © Frieda Rummenhohl

Our New Nature Reserve - Astonbury Wood

Introducing our new nature reserve at Astonbury Wood.

Thanks to the generosity of our amazing supporters, we are thrilled to announce that Astonbury Wood is now officially a Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust Nature Reserve.

Your support has enabled The Trust to secure a long-term lease for this ancient woodland site and we are now starting work to ensure its future protection.

Take a minute to explore this remarkable woodland in the video below and you'll see why it is such a special place for people and wildlife.

We are also running an online talk on Thursday 20 April so you can hear more about our plans for Astonbury Wood and its treasured wildlife. Book your place here.

Our full Astonbury Wood Nature Reserve web page will be ready very soon, but in the meantime, we are extremely grateful and we hope you can visit soon.

An ancient wild place

This woodland is a wonderful place for both people and wildlife. Located near the town of Stevenage, it is a vital refuge for people to escape their busy everyday lives and benefit from getting close to nature.

Speckled wood butterfly — Speckled Wood Butterfly (c) Neil Aldridge

With its sweeping bluebell carpets, choirs of songbirds, small stream and ponds, this woodland is one of the richest habitats in Hertfordshire. An essential home to rare threatened and treasured wildlife.

Ancient woodlands like Astonbury were once widespread throughout the country, but now only a fraction remain and those that do are in desperate need of protection and careful management.

Great spotted woodpecker © Mark Hamblin/2020VISION

Our vision for Astonbury Wood

We want this woodland to continue to be an amazing place for both people and wildlife. Our expert team of staff are busy developing plans to care for this beautiful woodland and the unique wildlife that calls it home. Our immediate priorities include:

A safety survey, focusing on trees, paths and ash die back.
Ecological surveys so we can share and collect site habitat and species information.
Management planning to establish priorities, agree management approach, invasive species surveys and set actions plans for coming years.
Establishing volunteer roles and activities.
Welcome signs and developing plans for site wildlife information and trails.

Frequently Asked Questions

How did you raise the funds?

The Trust launched a major fundraising campaign in May 2021 with the aim to raise £104,000 by the end of July that year and was a great success! We had fantastic support from Aston Parish Council and the local community in promoting the campaign and we are enormously grateful to them and to all those individuals, groups and organisations that gave so generously to the appeal.

What will the campaign funding be used for?

The campaign target of £104,000 enabled the Trust to purchase a long term lease (125 years) for the woodland and ensure its future protection.

Contributions to the appeal are ringfenced to cover all the costs of purchasing the lease, site safety and infrastructure work, as well as to contributing to the ongoing management of the woodland.

Those funds raised over the £104,000 campaign target are separately ringfenced to be used to care for all Herts & Middlesex Wildlife Trust nature reserves.

What has been happening since the success of the appeal and the confirmation of the lease to the Trust?

The process of preparing and agreeing the final details of the lease for the woodland has taken a lot longer that the Trust could have envisaged because of the need to agree this with HCC (Hertfordshire County Council) and Astonbury Manor. This has been frustrating for everyone involved and particularly for all those who supported the fundraising campaign back in 2021. The good news is that we are finally there and the Trust can now move forward with our plans to improve the woodland for wildlife.

Is there public access to Astonbury Wood?

Yes, there are already a number of established walking routes through the wood. We are planning to provide new signage and information to help visitors learn about the wildlife at the site. Some areas of the wood are more vulnerable to damage and may need protection – for example to avoid trampling of bluebells and disturbance to nesting birds.

Astonbury Wood is a place where local residents can escape the bustle of urban life and benefit from being outdoors. We want to enable families to explore and be inspired to care for this important ancient woodland for generations to come.

Can I park at Astonbury Wood?

There is no public parking at Astonbury Wood Nature Reserve and it is not permitted for the public or site visitors to park anywhere along the Astonbury Manor drive, and it is unsafe to park on the other roads near to the site. Visitors should use the existing public footpaths to reach the site.

What sort of habitat is the wood and what wildlife is found there?

The site is an ancient woodland, which means it dates back to at least AD1600. With this length of time it has developed a very special flora and fauna and is designated as a Local Wildlife Site in recognition of this. The Wood is predominantly Oak Hornbeam coppice with a carpet of Bluebells in the spring. The woodland is home to variety of wildlife including butterflies, mammals, amphibians and woodland birds. The site is recognised nationally for fungi with 750 species. The planned surveys will help the Trust find our more about the wildlife of the Wood.

How big is Astonbury Wood?

54 acres / 22 hectares

Where is Astonbury Wood?

Astonbury Wood lies Southeast of Stevenage, near Bragbury End. The nearest postcode is SG2 8TH. Google map link here. Astonbury Wood is less than 5 miles from Stevenage town centre and Junction 7 of the A1M.

Who sold the lease for Astonbury Wood to the Trust?

Hertfordshire County Council has sold the 125-lease for Astonbury Wood with the aim of improving the Wood’s value for wildlife and community engagement. HCC did not wish to sell the freehold.

What is happening to the former education centre and is there public access to it?

The education centre site is not included in the Trust’s land and has been leased by HCC to Astonbury Manor who should be contacted about it for any enquiries.