PARISH COUNCIL CELEBRATES RESTORATION OF ANCIENT SITE

Tote Copse monument removed from ‘at risk’ register

Aldingbourne Parish Council is celebrating after Historic England recently removed a scheduled ancient monument the Council owns from the Government’s ‘Heritage at Risk’ register.

The monument, Tote Copse, was originally a lookout tower surrounded by a huge moat, built soon after the Norman Conquest next to the summer palace of the Bishops of Chichester that once existed in Aldingbourne.  It is situated in the west of the Parish off the Oving Road.  All that remains of the monument nowadays is a large mound, but because of confusion over ownership, the site had in recent years become overgrown with trees and scrub.  Historic England, the Government’s adviser on all aspects of the historic environment, therefore added the site to their ‘Heritage at Risk’ register last year.

Once the Parish Council was informed that the monument was considered at risk, it produced a plan to clear the site of scrub, and commissioned contractors to carry out the work.  This had to be to done by February in order to avoid disturbing nesting birds.

After the work was completed, Historic England announced last month that they were removing the site from their ‘At Risk’ register.

Reacting to the news, Parish Council Vice Chair Michelle Harbord said:

“We are delighted that Historic England have decided to remove Tote Copse, the only Scheduled Ancient Monument in the Parish, from the ‘At Risk’ register.  Although all that’s left of the lookout tower is a large grassy mound, we felt it was vital to preserve this important link with the Parish’s past, which has such a fascinating history.  

“It was a big challenge to get the monument cleared in time for the start of bird-nesting season in March – after a site visit with Historic England in the Autumn, we had to move quickly to produce a restoration plan, put the contract out to tender and appoint contractors to clear the scrub.  Historic England rightly imposed strict conditions for the works in order to avoid disturbing the ground, while the Council also wanted to ensure that they did not harm wildlife in any way.  We now have a plan in place to maintain the site and ensure that it does not become overgrown again.

“We’re very grateful to Historic England for all their help and guidance with this project.

Tote Copse before clearance

Tote Copse after clearance