First and Last – Our Living Working Landscape
Up with the Downs
Partners
Cornwall Wildlife Trust with the Penwith Landscape Partnership
Outputs
Surveys of rough ground and improvements to rough ground management
Description
The aim of An Gonyow Bys Vykken or Up with the Downs was to support the farming community in the management of semi-natural habitat on the downs and moors of Penwith, whilst conserving the heritage, biodiversity and cultural elements of the landscape through improving current, and providing a long term solution to, on-going management of the land.
Specifically the project identified areas of roughland and aimed to bring this under better management with long-term management plans. It developed skills in practical management techniques within the farming community and a local volunteer work-force, and worked with commoners on the co-operative management of habitat across some areas of common land.
This project provided funding to support individual work by farmers and landowners, with grants managed through our small grants programme and agreed by a grants panel.One of the particular successes of this project has been the introduction of Nofence collars on cattle in some areas of Penwith, removing the need for restrictive fencing while allowing cattle to continue in their management of Penwith's wild spaces where appropriate.
This project was led by the Cornwall Wildlife Trust, and was managed within the PLP team by our Ecologist, and Farm Environment Officer.
If you are a farmer in Penwith, you can find more information on our work with farmers on our Farming and Wildlife pages.
