Hazeley Heath

Hazeley Heath is a surviving vestige of a once sprawling lowland heathland of south England. As well as heathland, habitats include some mire/bog and deciduous woodland.

This tranquil heathland is home to some very special wildlife such as nightjars, tree pipits, woodlarks and silver-studded blue butterflies. These heathland specialists depend on a habitat which is rarer than the Amazon rainforest. Lowland heath still faces significant threats that put pressure on the specialised wildlife that rely on a fragile habitat. If heathland is lost, so is its unique wildlife.

An ancient habitat, heathlands were first created when Bronze Age farmers started clearing woodland to create grazing land and provide building materials. It continued to be used by people for centuries, for grazing, fuel and materials. Their activities maintained an open landscape and created a varied mosaic of micro-habitats within the heathland, including bare ground, which benefited the heathland wildlife. But from the early 20th century, many traditional practices started to decline and this rare habitat was lost.

To improve the heathland at Hazeley, we are undertaking a program of tree felling, scrub clearance, heather mowing, bracken control and soil scraping. This will mimic some of the traditional land uses that maintained the heath for millennia and create ideal conditions for heathland wildlife. 

Unfortunately, heathland restoration is rarely a pretty process. It can involve the use of heavy machinery and takes time. While we carry out the work, parts of the heathland may look a little unsightly - please bear with us - it will look better eventually!

The work at Hazeley is being generously supported by funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund (£859,900 to purchase the land and finance its early management), Natural England through Defra and a grant from the Pauline Meredith Charitable Trust.

Hazeley falls within the Thames Basin Special Protection Area, a series of fragmented heathland tracts across Hampshire, Berkshire and Surrey. It is also designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and part of Natura 2000.

History of Hazeley Heath

The military found Hazeley Heath Common an excellent place to prepare for war, and The War Office commandeered it as a place for tank training during the Second World War. The site was full of damp sand pits and boggy swamps where scenarios could be created to embed these vast machines in order for REME troops to pull them out. This was essential training for front-line action. 

Years later, a local boy came across several old tanks which had been abandoned on the site. Far from damaging the environment, this large vehicle movement on the site was great for its wildlife. Churning up tracts of land and demolishing bushes in many ways mimicked the actions of the commoners in earlier years, creating an ever-changing 'transitory' habitat necessary for lowland heathland, and had similar results to the RSPB's habitat works today.