Rockingham Forest covers an area of 572km squared that was formerly a medieval royal hunting forest. It covers the districts of Corby, Kettering and East Northamptonshire and contains 62 parishes. The forest contains a diverse landscape reflecting the changing land use and social influences from medieval times to the present day. It has the second highest density of ancient woodland in the country.
Many historic parklands created in the 18th and 19th Century, distinctive stone built cottages, rolling farmland and the remains of ironstone and limestone quarrying that was once a major influence in the area.
The project sought to enable local communities to research their own histories and contribute to an evolving database of information that will be accessible to present and future generations
Working with schools:
- Working with schools was very rewarding and successful, but the extremely high level of resources, commitment and communication needed to deliver the work was not anticipated
- Activities that involve taking students out of the classroom need to comply with a variety of school systems and procedures
Working with communities:
- Community involvement has been very successful, but still attracts mainly older people. In future, the Trust will make even more effort to promote activities as widely as possible and review how they are being delivered
- Some ‘working groups’ within the community have the confidence and motivation to carry out activities independently, whereas others need additional support. Future work will allow for increased staff time with the groups to encourage greater community participation and activity