Lost Woods

Wilding Wood north of Lewes. Photo Ed Goodall, Woodland Trust.

Lost Woods of the Low Weald and Downs is an exciting partnership project that aims to bring back to life forgotten areas of ancient woodland in Sussex. Partner organisations will work with landowners and local communities to rescue these woods, boosting biodiversity, creating a more resilient network of trees and a haven for wildlife.

Launched in July 2020 with support from players of the National Lottery, the project runs over an area of 400 square kilometres, from Pulborough in the West to the fringes of Lewes in the East. The partners have received over £340k in funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund to develop plans over an initial 18 month period, with the aim of unlocking a five year project with a multi-million pound delivery grant.

Small Woods involvement in the project is to talk and listen to landowners and find out what they need to manage woodlands more sustainably, then from that we will develop a full training programme. Small Woods will also explore the potential for providing physical infrastructure to aid in the management of woods, such as a small mobile retort kiln.

Lost Woods Project Basic Area Map

Lost Woods project partners:

• Action in Rural Sussex - www.ruralsussex.org.uk
• Small Woods Association - www.smallwoods.org.uk
• Sussex Wildlife Trust - www.sussexwildlifetrust.org.uk
• Woodland Trust - www.woodlandtrust.org.uk

With additional support from:

• Environment Agency - www.gov.uk/government/organisations/environment-agency
• Ouse and Adur Rivers Trust - www.oart.org.uk
• Funded by The National Lottery Heritage Fund - www.heritagefund.org.uk

For more information about Lost Woods of the Low Weald and Downs visit: Lost Woods Sussex on Facebook