Devon Character Areas

View north from the South West Coast Path towards Cornborough Cliffs © North Devon Coast AONB - Photographer Andrew Wheatley.

Contextual description

This area encompasses a sweep of coastal land from Beckland Bay (near Exmansworthy) to Westward Ho! in Torridge district. To the north is the sea, and to the east (beyond the settlements of Westward Ho! and Appledore) is the Taw-Torridge Estuary DCA. To the south is a transition to the Torridge Valley (marked by a change in landform) and the Western Culm Plateau (marked by the change in dominant vegetation to Culm grassland and plantation) DCAs. To the west is a gradual transition to the Hartland Peninsula DCA. All of the coast and its hinterland is within the North Devon Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and Hartland Heritage Coast.

Link to National Character Areas and Constituent Landscape Character Types

Constituent LCTs: 4D Coastal slopes and combes, 5B Coastal undulating Farmland and 4H Cliffs.

This DCA lies within The Culm National Character Area (NCA 149).

Summary character description

Deep combes cloaked in oak woodland wind inland from the wooded cliffs, with carpets of bluebells in spring. Streams rush down the valleys, and ferns thrive in the dark, damp conditions. The woodland paths, with their glimpsed views of the sea, have a sense of intimacy and tranquillity. Narrow lanes with high, fern-covered banks provide access to the sheltered combe villages of Buck's Mills and Clovelly, the latter with its picturesque harbour and whitewashed houses. On higher land behind and between the combes is a lush landscape with a rolling patchwork of fields, a peaceful settled feel, and views of the woodlands and the sea. There are open sea views across Bideford Bay towards the Taw-Torridge estuary, with Lundy a distinctive feature on the horizon.

Ornamental parkland at Clovelly Court.

Distinctive characteristics

• Underlying Culm Measures geology, with strata running east-west, parallel to the coast, giving the cliffs a tendency to landslips, and a distinctive rounded 'hog's back' profile.
• Coastal outcrop of Permian Sandstone between Portledge and Peppercombe, visible as a distinctive red patch on the cliffs.
• Striking coastal landforms including Blackchurch Rock, a truncated waterfall below Windbury Head, and the fossil cliff-line of Kipling Tors.
• A relatively sheltered bay, with gentler, more rounded coastal scenery than elsewhere along the coast.
• Southern and eastern areas dominated by agriculture on medium-quality soils, with rolling, irregularly shaped pastoral and arable fields extending to the cliff tops.
• Fields (including medieval strip-patterns around Woolfardisworthy) divided by hedgerows and banks with wind-sculpted hedgerow trees. Field boundaries are less frequent in the north-east around Abbotsham.
• Extensive coastal oak woodlands containing important lichens, ferns and ground flora within the sheltered combes, which are significant as part of Britain's 'temperate rain forest'. Bluebells carpet woodland floors in spring.
• Semi-natural habitats include the rocky foreshore, wooded and heathy cliffs, pockets of unimproved grassland and marshland (including Culm grassland), road verges and species-rich hedgerows and hedgebanks, including fern habitats.
• Impressive Iron Age defensive sites, including Clovelly Dykes and promontory forts at Peppercombe Castle, Buck's Mills and Windbury Head, just across the border into DCA 31.
• Historic coastal features, including quays, lime kilns and Clovelly harbour. Ornamental parkland inland contributes to the time depth of the landscape and provides rich wildlife habitat.
• Historic railway linking Bideford, Westward Ho! and Appledore through the Abbotsham cliff area, today forming part of the South West Coast Path out of Westward Ho!
• Coastal settlement of scattered farms and picturesque linear villages running down steep valleys to the sea. The nucleated villages of Woolfardisworthy and Parkham are found further inland. The towers of village churches form local landmarks.
• Sunken rural lanes with exceptionally high hedgebanks connecting villages, contrasting with the busy A39 which runs through the area.
• Attractive landscape with pleasing compositions of woodland, farmland and coastal scenery.
• An open seascape, featuring views of Lundy Island and across Bideford Bay to the Taw-Torridge Estuary.

The historic working fishing village of Clovelly, a Conservation Area.

Rolling pastoral and grassland fields, some of which are used for hay-making.

Special qualities and features

Exceptionally high scenic quality, with the coast and its hinterland part of North Devon Coast AONB and Hartland Heritage Coast.

Nationally and internationally important shoreline, cliffs, coastal heathland and coastal oak woodland habitats (Tintagel-Marsland-Clovelly Coast Special Area of Conservation and Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and Hobby to Peppercombe SSSI).

A small part of the North Devon Biosphere Reserve buffer zone extends into the area around Cornborough.

County Wildlife Sites covering woodland, grassland and wetland sites along the coast and further inland.

Regionally Important Geological Sites found along the coast between Mouthmill and Clovelly and at the Portledge to Peppercombe Permian outlier.

Significant areas of extensive semi-natural ancient woodland in coastal combes.

Scheduled Monuments including well-preserved Iron Age sites at Clovelly Dykes and Buck's Mills (as well as Windbury Head which overlooks the coast from DCA 31), ancient well sites, and the 18th century Kenwith Castle.

Conservation Areas at Clovelly, Buck's Mills, Northam and Appledore, plus numerous listed buildings, including farmhouses, farm buildings, country houses and industrial structures such as limekilns.

Grade I listed churches at Clovelly, Woolfardisworthy, Parkham, Alwington, Littleham and Westward Ho!.

Designed ornamental and parkland landscapes at Clovelly Court, Portledge and Cornborough, with Clovelly Court supporting nationally significant numbers of ancient trees rich in lichen epiphytes.

Large areas of land in National Trust ownership, including the Brownsham Estate, coastal land at Portledge, and unimproved pastures and woodland in the Peppercombe Valley.

Strong literary associations, with Clovelly becoming a tourist destination following references to the village in Charles Dickens' A Message from the Sea (published 1860).

Westward Ho! (the only English town to be named after a book) built following the success of Charles Kingsley's book set in the area (published 1855).

Strong recreational appeal, including Clovelly Harbour and Buck's Mills 'honeypot' sites and a popular section of the South West Coast Path.

Localised sense of remoteness, seclusion and intimacy with dark night skies, particularly in the wooded combes.

Forces for change and their landscape implications

Past and current

• Post-war intensification of farming leading to field enlargement and a spread of intensive farmland backing the cliffs (fragmenting areas of unimproved and maritime grasslands).
• The amalgamation of farm units and construction of large farm buildings (often highly visible in the landscape) and localised loss of hedgerows, bringing a more open character to the landscape.
• Lack of hedgerow management, with sections replaced or gapped up with post-and-wire fencing and some old hedgebanks lying derelict.
• Cover crops for game (relating to the nearby estates, notably on the Portledge estate) introducing new geometric patterns and textures of land cover into the coastal landscape.
• 20th century planting of conifer plantations within the open landscape and a decline in levels of woodland management (e.g. coppicing) of the area's broadleaved woodlands.
• Past localised replanting of broadleaved combe woodlands with coniferous plantation, as well as coastal squeeze of traditional western oak woodlands, (especially from Bucks Mills to Portledge), changing the character of the valleys and reducing biodiversity.
• Spread of non-native species (e.g. rhododendron), including within internationally/nationally designated cliff-side woodlands.
• Positive examples of habitat restoration, including the reintroduction of grazing on Brownsham Meadows Culm grassland.
• Landslides and storm damage at Buck's Mills - particularly vulnerable due to its position on the 'Sticklepath fault'. Rising sea levels and increased frequency/severity of storm events combine with seaward earth movements.
• Increased popularity of the area as a place to live, resulting in greater demand for housing and increased congestion on roads.
• High levels of tourism and day visitors, reducing tranquility around honeypot sites in summer and creating parking problems and traffic jams on narrow lanes.
• Tourist attractions, including accommodation and recreational/ entertainment facilities such as adventure parks, a watersports centre and cafes (especially along the A39), detracting from rural qualities.
• Pressure for development of large hotels, and the expansion of permanent structures in holiday parks (e.g. the visually prominent Bideford Bay holiday village) and campsites.
• Farm diversification schemes such as campsites, farm shops/cafes and former agricultural buildings converted into accommodation.
• Introduction of commercial-scale solar farms in the landscape (e.g. at Walland Farm, near Bucks Cross). A small turbine at Greencliff Farm is also locally prominent.
• Built development (both residential and recreational) at Bideford, Westward Ho! and Northam intruding onto the skyline (and impacting on dark skies), in views from the North Devon Coast AONB.
• Urban fringe land uses, such as horse paddocks around Northam.
• Skylines in adjacent areas becoming more developed - Fullabrook Down Find Farm and the telecommunications mast on the ridge behind Westward Ho! (DCA 44) punctuate the skyline in views to the north.

Future

• Forthcoming changes to agricultural subsidies (including the new ELMs scheme, which will pay landowners for the delivery of public goods and services, including for the restoration of nature) potentially affecting farm viability and management of landscape features such as hedgerows, and habitats such as unimproved Culm grassland and heath.
• Impacts of climate change on valuable remaining areas of maritime grassland and sessile oak woodland, with potential for increased growth rates accelerating the spread of scrub and trees into the open coastal landscape.
• Loss of coastal grazing, especially where coast path is fenced off leading to loss of extensive coastal grasslands.
• Change in woodland/tree species composition as new pests/diseases spread (including Ash dieback and Phytopthora pathogens) and species intolerant of climatic extremes die back.
• Coastal erosion, more frequent storm conditions and sea level rise likely to see the 'squeeze' of intertidal and coastal habitats such as the characteristic rocky foreshore and pockets of sandy beach. This may also lead to the loss of important historic coastal features such as the lime kilns at Buck's Mills as well as vulnerable lengths of the South West Coast Path.
• The Shoreline Management Plan cites a fast rate of erosion around Abbotsham in particular. A largely undefended coast, the policy stance is to continue allowing the coast to evolve naturally along much of its length.
• Increasing popularity of UK-based holidays (accelerated following the Covid-19 pandemic), leading to the potential for higher visitor and access demands. This could lead to further development pressures, demand for facilities/infrastructure and increased traffic levels.
• The future designation of the England Coast Path.
• Expansion and coalescence of larger settlements in the north-east of the area (e.g. Northam, Appledore, Westward Ho!), with associated visual impacts on the wider landscape (including light pollution).
• Ongoing increase in renewable energy sources, including biomass crops, solar farms, offshore and onshore wind, wave and tidal developments, and domestic-scale renewables which potentially have a cumulative landscape impact.
• Proposed underground/undersea electricity cable, (likely to make landfall at Abbotsham Cliff) is the preferred choice for the trans-ocean Moroccan (Sahara) Renewable Electricity Generation Project.

Communication masts and telegraph wires can form prominent features on open skylines.

Varied levels of hedgerow management have resulted in some boundaries becoming degraded and being replaced with post and wire fencing.

Landscape guidelines

Protect

• Protect the open vistas and important sea views, avoiding the location of new development and vertical structures on prominent skylines.
• Protect the area's distinctive coastline and open seascapes, as well as the sense of seclusion within combes.
• Protect winding rural lanes, resisting unsympathetic signage and highways improvements (including lighting).
• Protect the landscape's high levels of tranquillity and dark night skies. Investigate opportunities to minimise light pollution from Northam, Appledore and Westward Ho! which spills into the wider landscape.
• Protect (and sensitively restore if necessary) heritage features such as mills, limekilns and quays, providing low-key interpretation where appropriate.
• Protect the dispersed settlement pattern of the area, encouraging the sensitive location of new development (including farm buildings and tourism facilities) away from open skylines.
• Protect the locally distinctive building styles of whitewash, cream cob/render and exposed local stone with red brick detailing.

Manage

• Protect and appropriately manage the landscape's archaeological heritage including prehistoric defensive sites at Godborough Castle, Clovelly Dykes and on the eastern slopes above Buck's Mills, as well as medieval defences and an 18th century castle at Kenwith. This should include livestock grazing at appropriate levels and managing recreation pressure.
• Manage the landscape's valued woodlands (including cliff woodlands designated as SAC/SSSI), controlling invasive species and moving towards a predominance of broadleaves over conifers to enhance their wildlife interest. New planting should consider species of greater resilience to a changing climate.
• Manage and enhance ancient coastal and combe woodlands through traditional techniques such as coppicing and low-level grazing.
• Manage semi-natural habitats such as coastal heathland, Culm, maritime grassland and less-improved valley pastures to retain a mosaic of vegetation types, and create buffer zones between cliff communities and improved agricultural land behind.
• Encourage farmers to continue to farm 'marginal' areas as an integral part of their farming system, and to protect these areas from alternative land uses.
• Manage and extend wet woodland and wet meadows through appropriate grazing and traditional land management, to enhance their wildlife value and capacity for flood prevention.
• Manage and protect the landscape's network of hedgebanks and characteristic wind-sculpted hedgerow trees, replanting ageing or diseased specimens (with climate hardy species of local provenance) to ensure the future survival of these characteristic features.
• Manage parkland and ornamental grounds through (for example) the planting of a new generation of specimen trees and extensive grassland management.

Plan

• Plan for changes to agriculture and farm diversification as a result of market pressures (including Brexit and increased demand for domestic food production) and the new Environmental Land Management Schemes. New crops may also become viable as a result of climate change and the potential landscape impacts of these should be considered (e.g. tall bioenergy crops could impact on iconic seascape views).
• Replace gappy sections of the hedge network and lengths of fencing to reinforce important field patterns. New hedge bank construction should reflect local variations (e.g. choice of species, height/width of bank and patterns of stone-facing).
• Plan for future restructuring of conifer plantations to mixed woodlands and areas of open habitat, retaining timber production to assure long-term sustainability.
• Link fragmented patches of semi-natural habitat within the farmed landscape, such as Culm grassland, unimproved species-rich grassland and scrub. Patches of maritime grassland, wet flushes and bracken along the coast should also be managed as part of a wider nature recovery network.

• The natural regeneration of woodland should be encouraged and new planting (using climate-hardy species and in line with Right Place, Right Tree principles) undertaken to link fragmented sites, including within combes and on steep coastal slopes. Avoid new planting which could obscure important coastal views.

• Plan for the impacts of a changing climate on the coastline, allowing natural processes to take place whilst considering how wildlife habitats, heritage assets and the South West Coast Path can be expanded or relocated to account for coastal squeeze. Involve local people in decision-making.
• Plan for habitat roll-back as coastal cliffs retreat, including through managing cliff-top land extensively to reduce nutrient levels.
• Develop a sustainable transport strategy to reduce tourist traffic on the landscape's road network.
• Plan for the expansion of nearby settlements (Westward Ho!, Northam, Appledore and Bideford), incorporating green infrastructure links to contribute to nature recovery networks and provide sustainable opportunities for travel, access and recreation.
• Avoid siting new residential development on prominent, open skylines.
• Ensure any new developments to meet ongoing tourism demand are well-sited and appropriately screened, incorporating sustainable design principles and reflecting local vernacular styles/materials where possible.
• Ensure that plans for future energy and telecommunications infrastructure consider landscape and visual effects, (including cumulative effects), are sited in appropriate locations, and their impacts mitigated through careful design and planting where appropriate.

DCA 3 Bideford Bay Coast (PDF) [1MB]

Distant view of Dartmoor looking south-east from Codden Hill.

Contextual description

Located south-east of Barnstaple in North Devon District, this Devon Character Area (DCA) comprises a well-wooded landscape with strong parkland influences. To the north and east are gradual transitions to the North Devon Downs and South Molton Farmlands DCAs respectively. The lower land of the Taw Valley DCA wraps around the southern and western parts of the area.

Link to National Character Areas and Constituent Landscape Character Types

Constituent Landscape Character Types (LCTs) include 1D Estate Wooded Ridges and Hilltops, 3G River Valley Slopes and Combes and 5D Estate Wooded Farmland.

This DCA falls within The Culm National Character Area (NCA 149) and, across its northern stretch, Exmoor National Character Area (NCA 145).

Summary character description

A landscape distinguished by its landform of high, whale-backed hills, and the presence of large wooded and parkland estates. There is a strong sense of peace and tranquillity in the woodlands and along the winding, hedge-banked lanes, with a feeling of being in the 'heart of Devon'. This is a managed, working landscape with a strong sense of history and culture, with many historic parkland features still visible in the landscape today. Estate villages cluster around stone bridges or crossroads, and farms nestle into folds in the hills.

Historic parkland at the Grade I Castle Hill estate with the distinctive creamy-yellow mansion visible in the distance nestled below the gently sloping hills.

Distinctive characteristics

• Ridges of chert form prominent hills rising above the Culm Measures mudstones with bands of sandstone. Exposures of limestone, chert and sandstone are visible in local quarries.
• Distinctive east-west, whale-backed ridges, surrounded by strongly undulating land.
• Landscape cut by a series of streams draining from the ridges, forming tributaries of the Taw and Bray rivers (to the west and east respectively).
• Predominantly pastoral character with sheep and cattle grazing, and some arable on higher quality land. Hill slopes and summits provide rough grazing land, and rectilinear blocks of estate woodland are used for game shooting.
• Mixture of sinuous, small-medium scale medieval fields and larger, more regular larger enclosures of recent origin, often bounded by mixed-species hedges with flower- and fern-rich banks.
• Exposed areas are enclosed by hedges with no topping vegetation, whilst woodland edges are characterised by grown-out lines of beech.
• Well-wooded character, with bands of beech and oak woodland snaking across the ridges and along stream valleys. Large blocks of conifer plantation and secondary woodland are found on hill slopes.
• Extensive areas of ornamental woodland and historic wood pasture are associated with the estates, with ancient and veteran trees.
• Traditional orchards found throughout the area, with a cluster around Landkey and Stowford and within stream valleys.
• A wealth of other habitats, including heathland, purple moor grass, bracken, semi-improved grassland, Culm grassland, rush pasture, ponds, valley mire and damp meadows.
• Several parkland estates strongly influence landscape character, including the 18th century Castle Hill mansion with its creamy-yellow buildings standing out in the landscape.
• Other historic features from different periods, including a Bronze Age bowl barrow, moated site, deserted medieval village, and quarries traditionally worked for roadstone.
• Hamlets and scattered farmsteads nestled at the base of slopes, with small villages focused around road and stream crossings.
• Strong coherence of building styles: a traditional vernacular of whitewash with black painted details along with some buildings of cream cob/ render or exposed local stone.
• Winding rural roads and tracks bounded by flower-rich Devon banks which restrict views and cross numerous streams on stone bridges. Crossroads are marked by distinctive white fingerposts.
• Strong overall sense of tranquillity and history away from the main settlements (e.g. Landkey) with little modern development. Tranquillity locally reduced near main roads including the A377 and A361 North Devon Link Road.
• Turbines at Fullabrook Down Wind Farm (DCA 44) visible in views to the north.

Distant view west of the High Culm Ridges DCA from near Cobbaton. A poultry farm visible in the middle distance.

Special qualities and features

Hill summits of up to 190m affording spectacular panoramic views to the uplands of Exmoor National Park (to the north), Bodmin Moor and Dartmoor National Park (to the south) and Lundy Island (to the north-west).

Geological Site of Special Scientific Interest at Highdown Quarry, recognised for its exposure of Wavellite crystals, first discovered at this site. Codden Hill Quarry is a Regionally Important Geological Site.

High scenic quality, with the prominent and distinctive ridge - including Codden Hill - forming an important landscape backdrop to the surrounding area.

Ancient woodland throughout the area, with large specimen trees and historic wood pasture associated with parkland and farmland.

Traditional orchards, particularly around Landkey and Stowford.

Many County Wildlife Sites, valued for their heathland and unimproved grassland habitats.

The Grade I registered Castle Hill Estate, lying to the north-east of the area.

Scheduled Monuments from many periods adding time-depth to the landscape, including a medieval moated site at Brightley Barton and deserted village near Landkey, plus features associated with historic parklands (e.g. deer park pale, ice house and fishpond at the Castle Hill estate).

Several Conservation Areas, including clusters of listed buildings in the historic cores of Swimbridge, Landkey, Landkey and Swimbridge Newland, Chittlehampton and Bishop's Tawton.

Strong sense of peacefulness, with locally high levels of tranquillity; dark night skies in the southern part of the area.

Recreational value provided by the popular Tarka Trail passing through the north-west corner of the area, Two Moors Way recreational walking route (linking Dartmoor and Exmoor) crossing the east of the area, and open access land in the west.

Forces for change and their landscape implications

Past and current

• 20th century and ongoing expansion of Barnstaple and the nearby villages of Swimbridge and Landkey, eroding local levels of tranquillity and changing the character of the landscape.
• Post-war agricultural intensification and a decline in the agricultural economy leading to an amalgamation of smaller farms into larger units.
• Loss and replacement of Devon hedge banks with fencing to facilitate intensive agricultural production.
• Electricity pylons and new large farm buildings forming visually intrusive features and diluting the landscape's historic character.
• Norbord factory on the western edge of South Molton forming a detracting feature in views from elevated land to the east of Chittlehampton.
• Visual and noise intrusion from the A361 North Devon link road in the north of the area. Road improvements and upgrades including road widening and junction upgrades are resulting in increased visual impact and a localised reduction in tranquillity.
• Increase in tourism and recreation, with golf courses (e.g. Portmore Golf Park), part of the Tarka Trail and farm diversification (e.g. campsites, equine businesses) introducing new elements into the landscape.
• Past quarrying activity (e.g. Venn Quarry) leaving visible scars in the landscape (although some former quarries are important both for nature conservation and for displaying geological exposures).
• Neglect and limited new/ replacement planting in some areas of the parkland estate.
• Past conifer planting on areas of heathland, ancient woodland and wood pasture.
• Past loss of heathland (Codden Hill) and fragmentation of remaining semi-natural sites. A decline in grazing levels leading to scrub encroachment on some heathland sites including the southern slopes of Codden Hill.
• Loss of traditional orchards and associated landscape features and biodiversity.
• Light spill from Barnstaple and South Molton reducing dark night skies in the west and east of the area respectively.
• Effects of climate change resulting in wetter and warmer winters, and more frequent hot and dry periods increasing the risk of drought in summer, plus more frequent extreme weather events such as storms with more intense rainfall causing flooding particularly on lower ground.

Future

• Potential change in ownership of parkland estates, leading to a gradual change in their character and patterns of management.
• Parkland and in-field trees increasingly susceptible to climate extremes including damage from storm events, intense summer drought conditions and flooding; growing prevalence of pests and diseases (e.g. Phytophthora) threatening survival of ancient woodland and veteran trees.
• Longer growing season and enhanced growth rates of vegetation (as a result of climate change) including bracken, gorse and secondary woodland resulting in a decrease in remaining areas of heathland. New agricultural crops may also become viable both due to a changing climate and markets.
• An increased prevalence of pests, diseases and pathogens affecting the composition and distribution of the landscapes semi-natural woodlands and individual tree specimens.
• Forthcoming changes to agricultural subsidies, including the new Environmental Land Management scheme (ELMs) which will pay landowners for the delivery of public goods and services, including for the restoration of nature. This may impact 'marginal' areas such as heathland on Codden Hill, parkland management, and the management of landscape features such as hedgerows and hedgebanks.
• Increase in UK-based tourism with associated demands for new facilities (e.g. golf courses, car parks), as well as an increase in traffic levels on rural roads and farm conversions to holiday accommodation.
• Development pressure along the length of the A361 between Barnstaple and South Molton potentially affecting views from high land.
• Further demand for renewable energy schemes, including wind turbines (particularly on high ridges), bio-energy crops, solar arrays (on south-facing slopes) and domestic-scale renewables which may have a cumulative impact on landscape character.

Far-reaching views north-east from Codden Hill across Venn Quarry towards Barnstaple, with Fullabrook Down Wind Farm visible on the skyline.

Landscape guidelines

Protect

• Protect the historic character of the landscape, avoiding intrusive or insensitive developments.
• Protect long views from high ground and designed estates.
• Protect and manage surviving traditional orchards.
• Protect historic landscape features such as estate railings, bridges and white fingerposts, restoring or repairing as necessary.
• Protect and appropriately manage the nationally important features relating to the Castle Hill Estate (including parklands, fishpond, park pale, ice house and deer fencing).
• Protect the landscape's distinctive pattern of nucleated historic hamlets and villages focused around crossroads or stream crossing points.
• Protect the locally distinctive vernacular building styles of whitewash with black painted details, cream cob/ render and exposed local stone.
• Protect the small-scale rural lanes and tracks and their associated hedges and flower-rich hedge-banks, resisting unsympathetic highways measures and intrusive signage.
• Protect and appropriately manage archaeological sites, introducing sensitive interpretation where appropriate.
• Protect and provide interpretative information (and access opportunities where possible) on the important geological exposures revealed through past quarrying activity.
• Retain some conifer plantations as recreational spaces, especially where they are accessible from rights of way (e.g. the Tarka Trail).

Manage

• Manage parkland landscapes, including valued tracts of wood pasture, resisting the conversion of pasture to arable, and managing grazing levels.
• Manage remaining ancient and veteran parkland trees, including through traditional pollarding where appropriate.
• Sustainably manage woodland (using of traditional techniques such as coppicing) and investigate opportunities for the use of timber as woodfuel. Promote natural regeneration and use extensive grazing to enhance the species diversity of woodland ground flora.
• Manage and expand semi-natural heathland habitats (e.g. Codden Hill), including through the use of appropriate grazing and burning as necessary.
• Manage agricultural land to increase its wildlife interest, including through the use of buffer strips, uncultivated margins and field corners.
• Manage the network of Devon banks, reflecting local variations in styles and species composition. Reduce flailing cycles, allowing lengths to grow out, particularly in lengths away from the road network.

Plan

• Plan for changes to agriculture as a result of market pressures (including Brexit and increased demand for domestic food production) and identify opportunities through the new Environmental Land Management Schemes. New crops may also become viable as a result of climate change and the potential landscape impacts of these should be considered.
• Ensure long-term renewal of parkland, including the planting of the next generation of veteran trees (choosing a diversity of species to improve resilience).
• Respond to the UK-wide policy drive for tree/woodland planting in line with the Devon Local Nature Partnership's 'Right Place, Right Tree' principles. Ensure there is a balance of climate-resilient native species appropriate to the local landscape and which retain and enhance the distinctive characteristics of the landscape, including using new tree planting to help screen and soften visual impact of new built elements that detract from rural character.
• Restore and manage areas of relict traditional orchards and explore opportunities for the creation of new ones, including community schemes to improve local food production and access to nature.
• Plan for the loss of hedgerow trees to disease including ash dieback.
• Reinstate coppicing and hedge laying to neglected sections, planting new trees where specimens are over-mature (using climate-hardy species to ensure longevity). Restore lost and gappy sections, particularly at right angles to slopes, to strengthen field patterns and reduce soil erosion / run off into adjacent watercourses.
• Develop long-term restructuring proposals for the more prominent conifer plantations to mixed woodland and open habitats, including re-creation of heathland and Culm grasslands as part of local nature recovery networks. Incorporate opportunities for access and recreation, wherever possible.
• Establish a new generation of parkland and in-field tree specimens, assuring a future for these important landscape features.
• Expand lowland heathland around Codden Hill, with remnant sites re-linked to form an intact habitat network and contribute to nature recovery networks.
• Explore options for habitat re-creation in disused quarry sites, whilst protecting the legibility of important geological outcrops. Provide opportunities for educational access where possible.
• Screen noise/light from major roads and settlement edges using characteristic hedge/tree planting. Ensure any new development in the open countryside (e.g. large agricultural buildings) is well screened using topography and new/existing vegetation cover.
• Plan for continued development of larger settlements in the area (including Barnstaple, Swimbridge and Landkey), integrating new development into the landscape and providing green infrastructure links into the countryside to contribute to nature recovery networks and provide opportunities for access and recreation.
• Enhance the robust settlement pattern by providing design guidance on new developments, respecting settlement form, character and local vernacular.
• Ensure plans for future renewable energy developments and telecommunications infrastructure consider landscape and visual effects (including cumulative effects) so that these can be sited in appropriate locations and their impacts mitigated through careful design.
• Ensure new facilities and infrastructure to meet increased tourism demand are sensitively sited and designed, balancing the conservation of distinctive and valued landscape features with recreation, encouraging reconnection with the landscape while enhancing its rural and historic qualities.
• Sensitively locate any new development within existing settlement limits, avoiding linear spread along roads, and ensure development respects traditional building styles and local vernacular details (whilst incorporating sustainable design).

DCA 14 Codden Hill and Wooded Estates (PDF) [963KB]

Long views across undulating pastoral farmland with farmsteads nestled within.

Contextual description

This Devon Character Area (DCA) abuts the southern and western boundaries of Exmoor National Park. It is bounded to the west by the more open landscape of the North Devon Downs DCA and to the south by the South Molton Farmlands and Witheridge and Rackenford Moor DCAs. This area of enclosed pastoral land is incised by deep north-south wooded valleys and rises northwards to the Exmoor moorland edge, where there is a clear landscape transition. All of the DCA is within North Devon District.

Link to National Character Areas and Constituent Landscape Character Types

Constituent Landscape Character Types (LCTs) include 2D Moorland edge slopes and 3D Upland river valleys.

This DCA forms part of The Culm National Character Area (NCA 149).

A characteristic stone bridge crossing a tributary west of Molland, with views towards the densely wooded valley across marshy grassland grazed by sheep.

Summary character description

This landscape of rolling, interlocking ridges, deeply incised by river valleys and patterned by beech hedges, provides an important setting and transition to Exmoor and its dark sky reserve. The upland river valleys drain southwards from the high moorland, forming deep clefts in the landscape that contain clean, fast-flowing water and are clothed in ancient oak woodlands. The Bray Valley is the major landscape feature of the western part of the area; further east the valleys are shorter, steeper and narrower. Tree features and hilltop clumps form notable landmarks. The area is sparsely settled, with individual farmsteads and small hamlets and vernacular buildings that are mainly of sandstone and slate. Viewed from the south, the area forms the foreground landscape to Exmoor. Viewed from the north it forms a diverse and strongly patterned patchwork of fields and wooded valleys.

Wooded tributary valley (between North Molton and Molland) with grazing sheep on pastoral valley sides.

Distinctive characteristics

• Elevated land with rolling topography, underlain by Devonian sandstone around the edges of Exmoor, with a transition southward to Upcott Slate and the softer siltstones and mudstones of the Culm Measures.
• Landscape crossed by streams and springs draining into the steeply incised wooded valleys, with clear fast-flowing streams draining southwards from the high moorlands of Exmoor.
• Remnants of traditional orchards (e.g. Loxhore Mill, Newtown Bridge and near Brayford).
• Mixture of regular modern and parliamentary fields of small to medium scale, with smaller curving fields of medieval origin remaining on valley slopes; field patterns strong and intact.
• Square-cut beech hedgebanks and historic banks on the edge of Exmoor; more species-diverse Devon hedges (e.g. beech, sycamore, ash and gorse) with flower, fern and moss-rich banks on lower valley slopes.
• Mainly sheep grazing in improved pasture fields and rough grazing on areas of rush pasture on the edges of Exmoor; some horse keeping around settlements (e.g. Stoke Rivers) plus occasional arable.
• Higher ground sparsely wooded, with grown out wind-sculpted beech hedgebanks and some pine shelterbelts; in contrast, valley sides densely wooded - including ancient oak woods with a rich ground flora; beech-dominated woodlands; wet woodlands; and conifer plantations.
• Further nature conservation interest provided by patches of gorse, bracken, mire, acid grasslands and remnant heath on upper slopes; and areas of species-rich meadow on steep valley sides and rush pasture fringing streams.
• Strong time-depth provided by Bronze Age barrows and Iron Age hillforts in commanding positions above valleys (e.g. at Five Barrows Hill and Berry Hill) and ancient settlement remains - all Scheduled Monuments.
• Legacy of past industrial features such as stone bridges, mills, quarries and dismantled railways. Some operational quarries remain today (e.g. Bray Valley Quarry).
• Historic hamlets and villages at road crossings and bridging points, often centered around a square-towered stone church (e.g. High Bray). Farmsteads scattered throughout, often nestled in sheltered dips.
• Some larger settlements including linear housing spread outside their historic cores (e.g. Brayford and North Molton).
• Strong local vernacular of sandstone buildings with slate roofs, red brick detailing and some thatch (e.g. Heanton Punchardon and Prixford); along with cream and whitewashed cob/ render cottages.
• Straight roads enclosed by hedgebanks across upland areas, with occasional gaps providing long views across the landscape; steep, twisting valley lanes between fern-rich banks.
• Farm diversification evident including caravan, camping and holiday parks and farm shops, plus other tourism-related land uses.
• Expansive views from hill summits, contrasting with the secluded and intimate character experienced within valleys.
• Popular recreational area with numerous public rights of way (including long-distance trails) for walking, cycling, fishing and other outdoor pursuits.

Steep wooded river valley with sheep grazed pasture and distant views to Fullabrook Down Wind Farm.

Special qualities and features

Distinctive, unspoilt, and very exposed skylines below the Exmoor moorland edge and abutting the National Park.

High scenic quality, playing a key role as part of the setting of Exmoor National Park.

Outstanding views across North Devon, both northwards towards Exmoor and southwards into the heart of Devon.

Sense of isolation, tranquillity and remoteness, enhanced by natural qualities of the rivers and valley woodlands - one of the most tranquil landscapes in Devon, with dark night skies.

Moorland influence in vegetation with rich, varied wildlife habitats including part of the wider South Exmoor Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and Exmoor Heaths Special Area of Conservation. Several County Wildlife Sites for ancient woodland on valley sides.

Many Scheduled Monuments, concentrated in the northwest of the area, including prominent Bronze Age barrows on Bampfylde Hill, Berry Hill and the summits of Bratton Down; Iron Age hillforts including Smythapark and Castle Roborough; and North Thorne medieval settlement remains.

National Trust-owned Regency Arlington Court estate, a Grade II* Registered Park and Garden with 19th century parkland and historic wood pasture which is designated as a SSSI for its rich lichen and invertebrate communities.

Picturesque villages with traditional buildings linked by narrow winding lanes crossing historic stone bridges; many listed buildings and two Conservation Areas at Molland and North Molton.

A number of public rights of way cross the landscape, including parts of the Macmillan Way, Tarka Trail and Two Moors Way long distance trails. National Cycle Network route 3 (known as the West Country Way) runs east-west through the north of the area.

Forces for change and their landscape implications

Past and current

• Past planting of coniferous shelterbelts and plantations forming conspicuous features on higher ground, on valley sides and associated with Wistlandpound Reservoir.
• Decline in woodland management including coppicing, deer damage and a spread of invasive species (including Himalayan Balsam) affecting the appearance and biodiversity of the landscape's woodlands.
• Loss of traditional orchards, particularly along riversides and near farmsteads/settlements.
• Past hedgerow removal and replacement with post-and-wire fencing, affecting the integrity of field patterns.
• Lack of hedgerow management (laying and coppicing) leading to grown out sections of beech, now susceptible to wind throw and storm damage.
• Agricultural improvement of former areas of moorland to pasture, beginning in the late 18th century and intensifying after the Second World War.
• Decline in grazing levels on moorland edges and steep valley sides, leading to a spread of bracken and gorse, particularly on upper slopes.
• Suburbanising influence of pony paddocks on edges of settlements (e.g. Stoke Rivers).
• Prominent telecommunications mast on Bratton Down.
• Expansion of Bratton Fleming and Brayford in a linear form along roads, with cream houses and bungalows standing out in the landscape.
• Increasing demand for facilities such as caravan parks, holiday accommodation and visitor attractions - many as farm diversification enterprises due to uncertainty in the agricultural economy.
• Farm growth and diversification introducing new elements into the landscape, including modern agricultural buildings, farm shops/cafes; and domestic-scale renewable energy schemes.
• Introduction of commercial scale solar farms in the landscape (e.g. to the east of Bratton Fleming). Farm based wind turbines and views to the wind farms at Fullabrook Down (DCA 44) and Batsworthy Cross (DCA 67) beginning to influence character.
• Recreation pressures and growing traffic levels on rural roads, particularly during peak holiday season. Wistlandpound Reservoir is a popular visitor destination and the site of the Calvert Trust's activity centre for the disabled.
• Heavy farm traffic leading to vehicular damage to roadside hedges and woodland; subsequent removal of vegetation by the Highways' Authority changing the character of lanes.
• Development of modern houses with no vernacular features, not fitting with the character of the area.
• Peace and tranquillity interrupted by main roads in some valleys - particularly the A399 alongside the River Bray.
• Spread of Phytopthora resulting in the felling of rhododendron and larch and ash dieback leading to the loss of ash trees.
• Effects of climate change resulting in wetter and warmer winters, and more frequent hot and dry periods (increasing the risk of drought in summer), plus more frequent extreme weather events (impacting hydrology and flood risk in the valleys).
• Land management projects including the National Trust's grassland project working to restore and create species-rich grassland habitat across North Devon, including on the Arlington Estate.

Future

• Forthcoming changes to agricultural subsidies, including the new Environmental Land Management scheme (ELMs) which will pay landowners for the delivery of public goods and services, including for the restoration of nature.
• Intensification of agriculture on more fertile valley pastures in the valleys' lower courses to meet rising food demands, leading to an increased risk of diffuse pollution in watercourses.
• Potential for new food crops (e.g. vineyards) and other crop types (medicinal, bio-energy) appearing in the landscape as a result of a change in climate and growing conditions.
• Potential loss of or change in oak and beech-dominated valley woodlands due to spread of Phytophthora and other pests and diseases linked to changing climate. Drought stress and more frequent storm events also impacting on woodland and hedgerow tree survival.
• Longer growing season and faster growth of bracken, gorse and secondary woodland due to climate change, resulting in a decrease in remaining areas of heathland and rush pasture.
• More intense periods of drought as a result of climate change, leading to the drying out of important wetland habitats including wet meadows and rush pasture. Increased autumn and winter precipitation levels leading to higher water flow and seasonal flooding in the valleys.
• Development pressure within the area and along the main A399 corridor, including the conversion of traditional buildings to homes/holiday lets, particularly due to the attractiveness of the area as a place to live.
• Population increase in nearby settlements such as Barnstaple, Combe Martin and South Molton leading to higher water supply demands and the potential need for further reservoirs in the landscape.
• Policy drive for increased woodland planting to enhance the landscape's roles in filtering water, minimising downstream flooding, storing and sequestering carbon dioxide and providing a low-carbon fuel source (through coppice management).
• Increased demand for commercial-scale wind turbines and communications masts on higher ground as well as ongoing demand for domestic and community-scale renewables, including hydro-power, which could have a cumulative impact on the landscape.
• Increase in UK-based tourism with associated requirements for new facilities and infrastructure, as well as an increase in traffic levels.

Solar farm occupying 17 hectares of south-facing land to the east of Bratton Fleming.

Landscape guidelines

Protect

• Protect the distinctive, unspoilt, and exposed skylines below the Exmoor moorland rim and the DCA's important role as a setting to the National Park.
• Protect the area's outstanding views across North Devon.
• Protect the landscape's tranquillity and remoteness with clustered villages and hamlets creating a strong historic sense of place.
• Protect and appropriately manage the rich cultural heritage of the area's hilltops, including Bronze Age barrows, Iron Age hillforts and ancient settlement remains, including through livestock grazing at appropriate levels and recreation management.
• Protect the character, setting and wildlife interest of the Grade II* Registered Arlington Court, ensuring any new development does not encroach into the historic landscape or views to it.
• Protect the sparse settlement pattern of clustered hamlets, villages and farmsteads, preventing the linear spread of development along river valleys and roads wherever possible, to maintain the settlements' characteristic form and peaceful character.
• Protect and restore historic features within the valleys, particularly those relating to the rivers' industrial heritage such as mills, dismantled railways and bridges.
• Protect the landscape's network of quiet lanes enclosed by woodland and species-rich hedgebanks, resisting unsympathetic highways improvements or signage.
• Protect and maintain the condition of the landscape's characteristic built features, such as stone hump-backed bridges.
• Protect the area's dark night skies which act as a 'buffer zone' to the nearby International Dark Sky Reserve within Exmoor National Park. Explore opportunities for noise/light attenuation around settlements and along major road corridors such as the A399.

Manage

• Encourage continuous cover management of conifer plantations for sustainable timber production, recreation and wildlife, creating new green links to surrounding semi-natural habitats as part of local nature recovery networks.
• Restore planted ancient woodland sites to semi-natural woodland.
• Manage and enhance the valleys' semi-natural woodlands through traditional techniques including coppicing and grazing to promote natural regeneration and species diversity of ground flora; explore opportunities for utilisation of coppice residues as a low-carbon fuel source.
• Manage the landscape's distinctive beech hedges to strengthen the strong square field pattern on higher ground. Respect traditional methods and styles of construction, including stone facing on banks.
• Replant lost hedges (particularly along slopes) to reinforce the distinct field patterns of the landscape, contribute to nature recovery networks, minimise soil erosion and reduce diffuse pollution.
• Sensitively manage and protect parkland trees at Arlington Court, retaining veteran trees and securing the next generation through new planting.
• Support farmers in management of 'marginal' areas as an integral part of their farming system. Manage rough grassland, heath and rush pasture through a continuation of livestock grazing at appropriate levels, along with a programme of scrub removal. Resist further agricultural intensification particularly on the moorland edges.
• Within the valleys, manage and extend species-rich meadows and floodplain grasslands through appropriate grazing and traditional land management regimes - both to enhance their wildlife value and functions in flood prevention.

Plan

• Understand changes to agricultural policy as a result of market pressures (including Brexit and increased demand for domestic food production) and identify opportunities through the new Environmental Land Management scheme (e.g. restoring traditional orchards and increasing biodiversity in upland areas).
• Potential for new agricultural income streams including payments for carbon credits and biodiversity units as part of new Biodiversity Net Gain legislation, which may result in an increase in habitat restoration and creation on farms.
• Aim for long-term restructuring of the more prominent conifer plantations and shelterbelts to mixed productive woodland and open habitats, including re-creation of heathland and rush pasture as part of local nature recovery networks. Incorporate opportunities for access and recreation wherever possible.
• Strengthen the landscape's resilience to climate change, including through new tree planting, natural succession and wetland restoration along watercourses to enhance water storage capacity in times of drought, and flood prevention during episodes of high rainfall.
• Encourage opportunities for floodplain restoration/re-connection/enhancements as well and tree planting within valleys in order to better manage flooding for downstream communities.
• Undertake new tree planting following Devon Local Nature Partnership's 'Right Place, Right Tree' principles. Avoid locations where trees would adversely affect valued characteristics of the landscape including long views and the expansive, open character of higher ground.
• Restore and manage areas of relict traditional orchards and explore opportunities to create of new ones, including community orchards to promote local food production.
• Explore options for the potential development of small-scale hydro schemes as a valuable source of renewable energy on suitable sites (both in ecological and landscape terms).
• Ensure plans for future renewable energy developments and telecommunications infrastructure consider landscape and visual effects (including cumulative effects) so that these can be sited in appropriate locations and their impacts mitigated through careful design, siting development away from where it will impact upon open views (including to Exmoor).
• Identify future development needs due to an increasing population, ensuring careful siting and design in accordance with sustainable development principles. Where possible, plan for landscape mitigation of existing poorly sited/designed development through natural screening and provision of a surrounding network of green spaces, wildlife habitats and recreational routes.
• Utilise local building styles and materials (including sandstone with slate roofs and cream cob/render) in new development wherever possible, whilst seeking to incorporate sustainable design.
• Ensure there is sustainable tourism, seeking a balance between encouraging access and reconnection with the landscape and retaining its special remote qualities, and any new facilities and infrastructure to meet increased tourism demand are sensitively sited and designed.

DCA 27 Exmoor Fringe (PDF) [1MB]

View west from South West Coast Path of Hartland Point and Shipload Bay (AONB Copyright).

Contextual description

This Devon Character Area (DCA) comprises the south-western part of the North Devon coast, within Torridge District. It is bordered by the sea to the north and west, and by the county boundary with Cornwall to the south. To the east there is a gradual transition to the Bideford Bay Coast DCA and a more abrupt transition (marked by the prevalence of unimproved Culm grassland) to the Western Culm Plateau DCA. All of the landscape is within the North Devon Coast Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and the coastline is defined as part of the Hartland Heritage Coast.

Link National Character Areas and Constituent Landscape Character Types

Constituent LCTs: 1B Open coastal plateau, 3H Secluded valleys, 4D Coastal slopes and combes, 4H Cliffs and 4I Rocky foreshores.

This area falls within The Culm National Character Area (NCA 149).

Summary character description

On the Hartland Peninsula, complex geology, combined with centuries of pounding by the full force of the Atlantic waves, has produced some of the most dramatic seascapes and coastal scenery in Devon, with the contrasting sheltered northern coastline (between Hartland Point and Windbury), and the exposed western cliffs south of Hartland Point. The cliffs are high and rugged, with zig-zag faults and folds. Wave-cut platforms and spectacular coastal waterfalls are also distinctive features of this jagged, exposed and windswept coastline, with the profile of Lundy visible in the open seascape. Coastal heathland on the cliff tops produces vivid and changing colours for much of the year. Inland, the area contains an open and elevated plateau of agricultural land, which contrasts with the twisting, wooded combes that cut into the plateau at its coastal edge.

View east from the South West Coast Path near Hartland Quay towards Stoke, with the distinctive tower of The Church of St Nectan forming a prominent vertical feature on the open skyline.

Distinctive characteristics

• Folded and faulted strata of underlying carboniferous Culm rocks with twisted, zig-zag strata clearly visible in the cliffs.
• Erosion by the sea creating extensive wave-cut platforms and coastal waterfalls which contribute to the dramatic seascape.
• An undeveloped coast of rocky headlands and pebbly bays, many of which are inaccessible.
• The coastal hinterland comprises very gently rolling plateau land, incised by steep combes running down to the sea.
• Woodland (usually ancient and oak-dominated) is confined to the coastal combes where it is a distinctive feature, with occasional hedgerow trees and shelterbelts on the open plateau.
• Relatively poor soils, traditionally supporting pastoral agriculture.
• Fields irregularly shaped, and of varying sizes, divided by species-rich Devon hedges and wind-sculpted hedgerow trees. Remnant strip field systems are found around Milford Common and Hardisworthy.
• Extensive semi-natural habitats, including inaccessible rocky cliffs and shoreline, oak woodland and coastal heath, supporting a rich diversity of plants, insects, animals and birds.
• An ancient landscape, containing a nationally important Iron Age hillfort at Embury Beacon, numerous barrows on Bursdon Moor and Welsford Moor, medieval settlements and field patterns, ancient lanes, and distinctive square-towered churches.
• Other historic features include ancient wells, historic parkland (around Hartland Abbey), watermills and relics of former industry (e.g. limekilns and the remains of Hartland Quay).
• A dispersed settlement pattern of ancient farmsteads, hamlets and villages, including the larger settlements of Welcombe and Hartland.
• Settlement connected by an intricate network of lanes, with wide verges, high hedgebanks and small stone bridges at river crossing points. Black and white fingerposts at road junctions are distinctive features of the lanes.
• Prominent skyline buildings such as the tower of St Nectan's Church in Stoke (one of the highest in Devon) and Hartland Point radar dome stand out on the open plateau. Lundy Island is an iconic seascape feature in open coastal views.
• Great contrasts between the open coastal plateau with its long views and big skies, and the dramatic coastline with its enclosed, wooded combes.

Mixed agricultural land use of the coastal plateau, with sheep grazing and arable fields beyond. Lundy island appears shadow-like on the horizon.

Hartland village nestled on a sheltered slope within large open pastoral fields on the coastal plateau.

Special qualities and features

Outstanding scenic quality and seascapes within the North Devon Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and Heritage Coast.

A sense of remoteness, with levels of tranquillity and dark night skies across the area among the highest in Devon.

Extensive nature conservation designations including Marsland-Clovelly Coast Special Area of Conservation (also designated Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) for its outstanding geology and coastal habitats).

Concentrations of ancient oak woodland in the coastal combes, often with SSSI or County Wildlife Site designation; and Marsland Valley Local Nature Reserve.

The coastline adjoins the Hartland Point to Tintagel Marine Conservation Zone (MCZ), valued for its range of regionally and nationally important habitats, and for its contribution to the connectivity of intertidal habitats along the North Devon and Cornwall coastline.

Regionally Important Geological Sites at Colpit Quarry, Hartland Quay and Embury Beacon.

Scheduled Monuments, including Embury Beacon and Windbury Head Camp Iron Age hillforts, and St Clare's well at Philham.

Listed buildings throughout the area, including farmhouses and outbuildings, bridges, mills, pubs, cottages and quays. Hartland Abbey and St Nectan's Church (in Stoke) are Grade I listed.

Contrast between the exposed coastal headlands and the atmospheric processes from the sea and the sense of enclosure within the deep incised wooded valleys further inland.

Conservation Area covering the cluster of listed buildings in Hartland.

Tall hedgebanks with a tunnel-like quality where the lanes descend into the combes. Locally distinct, wide verges supporting a range of flowers and insects.

A good network of lanes and public rights of way (including the South West Coast Path) providing recreational access, with common and/or open access land along much of the cliff tops.

Significant areas of land owned and managed by the National Trust (including the Welcombe estate and part of the Brownsham estate).

Forces for change and their landscape implications

Past and current

• Post-war intensification of agriculture, leading to field enlargement, hedgerow removal/damage and the spread of arable cultivation, leading to the loss of semi-natural habitats.
• Decline in small farms, and amalgamation and intensification into bigger enterprises leading to farm expansion on the plateau behind, impacting on the characteristically open, flat and undeveloped skylines (e.g. Beckland Farm and Blegberry Farm above Damehole Point).
• Farm diversification changing the traditional character of the landscape and adding new elements, such as holiday cottages. Some former agricultural buildings have been converted to holiday/residential accommodation.
• Continuing efforts required to manage open heathland, maritime grassland and archaeological sites, including through grazing, to reduce the encroachment of bracken, gorse and secondary woodland. Important views across the bay and to Lundy can be obscured by tall vegetation.
• Spread of invasive species and a decline in traditional management of woodlands.
• Popularity of the landscape for tourism and recreation, including users of the South West Coast Path. There is an associated increase in traffic levels on rural roads, demand for facilities such as car parking and signage, unauthorised camping, erosion and littering.
• The popularity of the cliffs for climbing, leading to cliff erosion and concerns relating to wildlife disturbance.
• Introduction of skyline features such as communications masts.
• Insensitive design of new housing developments, including a range of non-vernacular building styles (e.g. in Hartland).
• Views to developed seascapes across Bideford Bay, including Westward Ho!, Northam, the Saunton ridgeline and the moving turbines of Fullabrook wind farm; diluting the sense of remoteness associated with this landscape.
• Cumulative visual effect of both domestic turbines (e.g. the 20m turbine at Cheristow) and larger developments outside the DCA but visible from the coast- also impacting on remoteness and the open, rural skylines.
• Recent conifer planting and existing shelterbelts stand out in the open landscape, e.g. near Yapham Cross.
• Increased popularity and visitor pressure, impacting on the tranquil character and sense of remoteness and leading to the development of new visitor facilities including tourist accommodation and campsites.

Future

• Forthcoming changes to agricultural subsidies, including the new ELMs scheme which will pay landowners for the delivery of public goods and services, including for the restoration of nature, potentially affecting the management of landscape features and wildlife habitats such as hedgerows, coastal valley slope heaths and grasslands, and cliff-top pastures.
• Changes in seasonal weather patterns and the introduction of new species, pests and diseases due to climate change, potentially affecting agriculture and habitats such as woodland and heaths.
• Impacts of climate change on characteristic habitats and tree distribution (potentially increased growth rates, accelerating the spread of scrub and trees onto open coastal heath and heritage assets), including an increased prevalence of pests, pathogens and diseases.
• Ongoing climate change altering weather conditions and affecting growing seasons (potentially resulting in new crops becoming viable in the area), which could have an impact on landscape character, particularly on the open plateau.
• Change in woodland species composition as new pests/diseases spread (particularly phytopthora pathogens) and species intolerant of water level extremes die back.
• Individual hedgerow trees may become more susceptible to damage from the increasing frequency and magnitude of storm events.
• Higher sea level and storm frequency as a result of climate change leading to increased landslides and accelerated coastal erosion. The Shoreline Management Plan's policy stance is to continue allowing the coast to evolve naturally along much of its length.
• Coastal squeeze impacting on habitats such as the characteristic rocky foreshore and pockets of sandy beach. Cliff-top lengths of the South West Coast Path may also become at risk, along with archaeological and geomorphological features such as Windbury Head (already eroded) and the distinctive Chapman and Long Rocks.
• Footpath erosion on popular public rights of way and designated routes, including the future England Coast Path.
• Ongoing growth and demand for renewable energy sources, including biomass crops, solar farms, offshore and onshore wind farms, wave and tidal energy installations and domestic-scale renewables which could have a cumulative landscape impact.
• Future development around Hartland village, affecting the appearance and character of the settlement.
• Further growth in popularity of the area for recreation and tourism, eroding the landscape's high levels of tranquillity and leading to increased demand for facilities and accommodation (including farm conversions, caravan and camp sites, hotel developments, holiday cottages).
• Development pressure resulting from the popularity of the area as a place to live or own second homes.

Cliff edge and wave-cut platform at Welcombe Mouth. Cliff erosion is an ongoing threat along the coast.

Industrial-scale farm buildings stand out on the open plateau.

Landscape guidelines

Protect

• Protect the landscape's open vistas and sense of space, avoiding the location of new development and vertical structures on prominent skylines. Ensure that the medieval church tower at Stoke remains a prominent local landmark, including when viewed from the sea (e.g. by avoiding siting other vertical structures on the same skyline).
• Protect the area's high scenic quality, long stretches of undeveloped coast and the character of the landscape's expansive sea views (including to Lundy).
• Protect the landscape's high levels of tranquillity and dark night skies through the control and management of development, including highways.
• Protect the combes' characteristic sense of seclusion and remoteness, ensuring limited new development is contained within existing settlement limits and any new farm buildings are integrated into their landscape setting (e.g. through woodland planting).
• Protect sites designated for their biodiversity or cultural value, particularly the relatively rare coastal habitats and sites. Protect geological sites and provide appropriate management and interpretation where necessary.
• Protect historic and archaeological sites, including through management of scrub/vegetation (ideally through appropriate grazing levels), at Embury Beacon hillfort and other nationally important heritage assets.
• Protect the historic character of the area, encouraging the sensitive location of new farm buildings away from open skylines, respecting the local characteristic clustering of agricultural buildings within the landscape, and ensuring that any new development incorporates local vernacular building styles of whitewash, local stone and thatch (whilst seeking to incorporate sustainable and low carbon building construction and design).
• Protect the distinctive character of local lanes and hedgebanks, resisting highways improvements, lighting and intrusive signage.
• Protect and conserve locally distinctive black and white wooden fingerposts.

Manage

• Manage nationally important coastal habitats, including coastal heath and maritime grasslands, through supporting a continuation of extensive grazing at appropriate levels.
• Manage and extend areas of wet woodland and wet meadows through appropriate grazing and traditional land management regimes - both to enhance their wildlife value and functions in flood prevention.
• Manage and protect the landscape's network of hedgerows and characteristic dwarf hedgerow trees, replanting ageing or diseased specimens (with climate hardy species) to ensure the future survival of these characteristic features.
• Manage farmland, and sustain current agricultural use, keeping buildings, hedgerows and hedgebanks in good repair. Where farm diversification does occur, ensure it has minimal impact on the character of the landscape.
• Manage and enhance the combes' ancient oak woodlands through traditional techniques such as coppicing and a programme of invasive species removal. Control access by livestock, promoting natural regeneration to enhance longevity whilst using extensive grazing to promote the species diversity of woodland ground flora.
• Manage the landscape's popularity for recreation, encouraging the use of existing facilities and the South West Coast Path whilst providing sustainable transport options to reduce levels of traffic accessing this area.
• Manage access to the cliffs to reduce wildlife disturbance and erosion due to climbing.

Plan

• Plan for farm diversification and changes to agriculture as a result of market pressures (including Brexit and increased demand for domestic food production) and the new Environmental Land Management Schemes. New crops may also become viable as a result of climate change and the potential landscape impacts of these should be considered.
• Restore and develop interconnected nature recovery networks of coastal heath and cliff-top grassland (including Culm grassland) which extend inland, creating buffer zones between cliff communities and improved agricultural land.
• Plan for the impacts of a changing climate on the coastline, allowing natural processes to take place whilst considering how habitats, heritage/ geomorphological assets and the South West Coast Path can be expanded or relocated to account for coastal squeeze.
• Plan for the future of ancient/broadleaved woodlands (managing them to incorporate climate-hardy species) and other semi-natural habitats such as Culm grasslands and heath, particularly to account for habitat / species migration due to future climate change.
• Take a landscape-led response to the UK-wide policy drive for increased tree and woodland planting, implementing the Devon Local Nature Partnership's 'Right Place, Right Tree' principles to create a balance of climate-resilient native species appropriate to the local landscape.
• There is already some new woodland planting along the B3248 near Hescott Farm. Avoid further planting in open areas with characteristic long views out to sea and to Lundy.
• Provide design guidance on new developments, respecting traditional settlement form, character and local vernacular and incorporating sustainable design.
• New development should include green infrastructure links to contribute to recreation, wildlife and nature recovery networks.
• Plan for future demand for tourism related development and infrastructure (particularly in popular locations with access to the Coast Path). Develop a transport strategy to reduce tourism-related traffic on the rural roads and encourage active travel.
• Ensure plans for future energy and telecoms infrastructure consider landscape and visual effects (including cumulative effects) so that these can be sited in appropriate locations and their impacts mitigated through careful design.

DCA 31 Hartland Peninsula (PDF) [1MB]

View west from east of Instow towards the River Torridge and Appledore on the opposite banks of the river.

Contextual description

This long, narrow Devon Character Area (DCA) comprises the ridges of high land between the Taw Valley (to the east) and the Torridge Valley (to the west). To the north is the lower lying Taw-Torridge Estuary, and to the south is a gradual transition to the open inland plateau of the High Taw Farmland DCA. The northern half of this DCA falls within North Devon district, whilst the southern half is within Torridge district. A very small area, west of Winkleigh, is within Mid Devon.

Link to National Character Areas and Constituent Landscape Character Types

Constituent LCTs: 1F Farmed lowland moorland and Culm grassland, 3A Upper farmed and wooded valley slopes and 5A Inland elevated undulating land.

This DCA forms part of The Culm National Character Area (NCA 149). A small area at the northern tip is within Exmoor National Character Area (NCA 145).

Summary character description

An open, elevated landscape, where the long views out make an important contribution to the sense of place. The high land of Exmoor (to the north) and Dartmoor (to the south) provide orientation, and a backdrop of seasonally changing colour. In the north, views out to sea and across the North Devon coast lend a strong maritime influence. Views across and into the neighbouring Taw and Torridge valleys emphasise the contrast between this open farmland and the wooded, enclosed and intimate valley landscapes on either side. Skylines are very important, with clumps of trees and square church towers acting as prominent features and landscape focal points. Woodland and occasional patches of unimproved grassland contribute to the colour and texture of the landscape.

Mosaic of pastoral and grassland fields with mixed deciduous and coniferous woodland at Knapp Wood.

Distinctive characteristics

• Underlying Culm Measures geology creating a series of east-west ridges, rising towards the south and supporting poorly-drained soil.
• Ridges divided by small spring-fed tributary streams, flowing into the Torridge (to the west) or the Taw (to the east).
• Farmland generally in pastoral use, with some areas of arable on better-quality land.
• Complex pattern of fields, generally with smaller, irregular fields around villages and on valley sides, and larger, more regular fields (suggesting more recent enclosure) on areas of higher land.
• Some largely intact historic field systems (e.g. around Roborough and Hiscott) adding to the time-depth of the landscape.
• Fields generally divided by hedgerows or fern-rich hedgebanks in variable condition: some well-managed, others grown-out or closely flailed.
• Extensive linear semi-natural woodlands and remnant orchards associated with farms; occasional windswept trees and hilltop clumps of beech; and blocks of coniferous plantation on higher ground.
• Extensive areas of Culm grassland of national importance; farmland also supports a variety of habitats.
• Straight roads along high ground (often associated with prehistoric barrows) and a network of deep lanes and tracks on valley sides, indicating the area's importance as a routeway for millennia.
• Many other historic landscape features including bridges, medieval castles, prehistoric earthworks and numerous listed buildings, including Grade I listed churches at Westleigh, Howood, Tawstock and High Bickington.
• Parkland influence on landscape character in the north-west of the area around Tapeley Park and Tawstock Court.
• Settlement pattern of nucleated historic villages, generally on high ground and often clustered around a crossroads or bridge, with square church towers forming prominent landscape features.
• Scattered farmsteads, often at the end of long access tracks; many with vernacular features including whitewashed stone/ cob walls and slate or locally distinctive thatched roofs (e.g. around Tawstock).
• Long views from high ground across and into the Taw and Torridge valleys, and to Dartmoor or Exmoor, as well as views of the sea and Taw-Torridge estuary from the north.
• Skylines to the north are punctuated by pylons, telecommunication masts and occasional wind turbines, with views to Fullabrook Down wind farm (DCA 44).

Special qualities and features

High land plays an important role as a backdrop to surrounding character areas and to the settlements of Bideford and Barnstaple.

A sense of remoteness - despite the presence of various modern features in the landscape - with high levels of tranquillity and dark skies, particularly in the southern part of the area.

Culm grassland sites including Pope House Moor and Beaford Moor Sites of Special Scientific Interest.

Pockets of semi-natural ancient woodland in valleys (e.g. around Hollocombe), numerous County Wildlife Sites including woodland and grassland sites; and a Local Nature Reserve at Fremington.

Tapeley Park Registered Historic Park and Garden (Grade II*) is a distinct landmark overlooking the River Torridge, designated for its early 20th century formal terraces within 18th and 19th century parkland.

Several Conservation Areas covering historic village cores with clusters of listed buildings, including Beaford, Burrington, Fremington, Great Torrington, High Burrington, Instow, Kingscott, Tawstock and Winkleigh.

Numerous historic buildings scattered throughout the area, including churches (some Grade I listed), farmhouses and manor houses. Additional clusters of listed buildings at Eastleigh, Horwood, Newton Tracey, Roborough and St Giles in the Wood.

Historic features within the fabric of the landscape including lanes, remnant historic field patterns, stone bridges and white fingerposts.

Several Scheduled Monuments, often occupying prominent positions, including prehistoric ridge-top bowl-barrows, hillforts and enclosures, the medieval Tawstock Holy Well, and two castles in Winkleigh.

A network of lanes, tracks and public rights of way, as well as extensive areas of open access land such as Beaford Moor, Hollocombe Moor and Eggesford Forest.

Large scale mixed fields on elevated land south of Newton Tracey, with linear woodland following the course of a minor stream valley.

Forces for change and their landscape implications

Past and current

• Agricultural intensification, leading to drainage and improvement of Culm grasslands and loss of some landscape features such as hedges and hedgebanks and widening of gateways to accommodate larger farm machinery.
• Amalgamation of farms to improve viability, and construction of prominent agricultural buildings including large barns.
• Coniferous plantations on areas of former Culm grassland (e.g. around Dolton and Huntshaw Barton).
• Loss of traditional orchards reducing landscape diversity and habitat value.
• 20th century introduction of large-scale built features into the landscape, such as masts, pylons, quarries and a radar station, often on prominent hill-top sites.
• Industrial land uses on Winkleigh airfield, including chicken sheds and large warehouses locally altering landscape character.
• Expansion of prominent ridgetop settlements stand out as linear forms on the skyline (e.g. Winkleigh and Great Torrington).
• Urban fringe influences on the landscape in some areas, e.g. golf clubs, fisheries and pony paddocks as well as occasional fly-tipping near settlements.
• Industrial land uses including a landfill site at Holmacott, a recycling centre and derelict barns on the edge of Great Torrington, locally affecting landscape character and quality.
• Light spill from Barnstaple, Bideford and Great Torrington reducing the impressiveness of starlit skies in the northern part of the area.
• Traffic on the A39 and A3124 locally disrupts the sense of tranquillity.
• Renewable energy developments becoming more common in the landscape including solar farms (particularly in the north at Collacott Farm, Horsacott and Tower Park) and wind turbines on higher ridges, as well as views to windfarms in adjacent landscapes e.g. Fullabrook Down to the north.
• Tourism pressure in some parts of the landscape resulting in seasonally high levels of traffic on rural lanes.
• Effects of climate change resulting in wetter and warmer winters, and more frequent hot and dry periods increasing the risk of drought in summer, plus more frequent extreme weather events such as storms with more intense rainfall increasing flood risk.

Future

• Uncertainty over future levels of agricultural support and the nature of agri-environment schemes (post-Brexit), potentially reducing the viability of marginal farms.
• Loss of over-mature hedgerow trees and distinctive skyline beech clumps, including due to potential increases in storms and drought resulting from climate change.
• Potential for future woodland planting to reduce downstream flooding and increase carbon sequestration.
• Continued settlement expansion, leading to increased visual impacts of small-scale development, particularly around prominent villages and farmsteads.
• Risk of coalescence of settlements at Bickington, Fremington, Yelland and Instow, resulting in loss of the traditional settlement pattern.
• Further demand for both commercial and domestic-scale wind turbines, with potential for cumulative effects on landscape character.
• Ongoing demand for other renewable energy sources including solar farms on south-facing slopes and bio-energy crops, changing the pattern and appearance of the landscape.
• Ongoing climate change affecting seasonal patterns and growing conditions, changing agricultural practices and threatening the survival of semi-natural habitats such as woodland and Culm grassland.
• Change in woodland/tree species composition as new pests/diseases spread (including Phytopthora pathogens) and as a result of climate extremes (including drought, flooding and high temperatures).
• Continued increase in levels of domestic tourism with associated demand for new tourism and leisure facilities, particularly in the north of the area along the Taw and Torridge Rivers.

A wind turbine, chicken sheds and warehouses at Winkleigh Airfield introduce an industrial character to the otherwise rural landscape.

View north-east from Huish Moor towards wind turbines at Collacott Wind Farm.

Landscape guidelines

Protect

• Protect open skylines - which form the backdrop to surrounding DCAs and parts of the North Devon Coast AONB- from inappropriate development and changes in land use.
• Protect traditional farming and land management practices and resist further intensification.
• Protect the sparse settlement pattern and characteristic building styles, ensuring that any new development is sensitively sited (and screened if appropriate) and reflects the local vernacular in terms of form and style (whilst incorporating sustainable design). Avoid prominent ridgetop locations and sloping valley sides where development would be visually prominent.
• Protect historic buildings and features and their settings, particularly those prominent in the landscape such as church towers and bowl barrows on hills.
• Protect and appropriately manage the publicly accessible historic landscape at Tapeley Park, which occupies a prominent position over the River Torridge.
• Protect intact historic field systems such as those around Roborough and Hiscott. Restore lengths of hedges which have been lost, respecting local species composition and bank construction (where banks are present).
• Protect and manage surviving traditional orchards and explore opportunities for the creation of new ones, including community orchards.
• Protect dark night skies in the southern part of the area, resisting highways improvements and lighting schemes which would detract from this special quality of the landscape. Consider the introduction of noise/light attenuation on major road corridors and around urban edges.
• Protect the characteristically high levels of tranquillity and remoteness.
• Protect the pockets of open access land within the landscape, exploring greater linkages with the public rights of way access and areas where people live.

Manage

• Manage farmland, encouraging farmers to appropriately manage 'marginal' land as an integral part of their farming systems.
• Manage and strengthen hedgerows, hedgebanks and associated habitats using traditional techniques.
• Manage remnant areas of unimproved/Culm grassland, through appropriate levels of grazing.
• Manage remaining parklands at Tapeley Park and Tawstock Court to retain their distinctive character and historic value.
• Manage isolated windswept trees and distinctive hill-top tree clumps, replacing over-mature or storm-damaged trees as necessary to retain them as features within the landscape.
• Manage plantations for sustainable timber production and wildlife interest, as well as some recreational use if appropriate.
• Manage archaeological sites, including through grazing (where appropriate) and the introduction of sensitive interpretation.

Plan

• Utilise the new Environmental Land Management schemes and other initiatives (as they emerge) to manage and enhance the wildlife interest of the farmed landscape and contribute to nature recovery networks.
• Link remnant areas of Culm grassland, extending them where possible to increase their biodiversity value and their resilience to climate change.
• Plan for the diversification and future sustainability of conifer plantations in the landscape, exploring options for mixed stocking, the restoration of open habitats such as Culm Grasslands and opportunities for access/recreation.
• Plan a landscape-led response to the UK-wide policy drive for increased tree and woodland planting, implementing Devon Local Nature Partnership's 'Right Place, Right Tree' principles to create a balance of climate-resilient native species appropriate to the local landscape.
• Create a green infrastructure network for larger adjoining settlements (e.g. Great Torrington, Bideford, Barnstaple), to create links with the surrounding countryside and provide a framework for potential future sustainable development.
• Mitigate visually intrusive development sites (such as Winkleigh Airfield) through carefully designed planting.
• Plan for future need for energy and telecoms infrastructure including masts, and renewable energy installations, so that these can be sited in appropriate locations and their impacts mitigated through careful design.
• Enhance the landscape's strong settlement pattern by providing design guidance on new developments, respecting settlement form, character and local vernacular.

DCA 32 High Culm Ridges (PDF) [1MB]

South-easterly view from near Holsworthy over pasture and woodland (including East Statfold Wood prominent on elevated land) with a distant view of Dartmoor.

Contextual description

This Devon Character Area (DCA) comprises a relatively flat plateau of land, dominated by Culm grassland, coniferous forests and some pastoral agriculture. It is located between the higher land of the Broadbury Ridges DCA to the south and the West Torridge Upland Farmland DCA to the north (beyond the upper reaches of the River Torridge). To the west is a gradual transition into the Upper Tamar Tributary Valleys and the Western Culm Plateau DCAs. To the east (beyond the River Okement) is the High Taw Farmland DCA. The area straddles Torridge District (to the west) and West Devon (to the east).

Link to National Character Areas and Constituent Landscape Character Types

Constituent Landscape Character Types (LCTs) include 1F Farmed lowland moorland and Culm grassland and 3C Sparsely settled farmed valley floors.

This DCA falls within The Culm National Character Area (NCA 149).

Summary character description

This open landscape of pastoral farmland, rough ground and forests has an elemental, empty character, dominated by wet, unenclosed moorland and expansive views, including to Dartmoor and Bodmin Moor in the distance. The colours of the moorland - yellow gorse, purple heather and golden grasses - contrast with the dark green of coniferous plantations and the patchwork of brighter green pastoral fields. The Lew valley has a softer, more enclosed and intimate character, and is generally inaccessible upstream from the bustling market town of Hatherleigh. Occasional clustered villages are linked by straight lanes flanked by rush-filled ditches.

Popular viewpoint at Hatherleigh Moor looking southwards over the DCA towards Dartmoor.

Distinctive characteristics

• Underlying Culm Measures geology of siltstones, sandstones and mudstones, but with localised outcrops of volcanic lava.
• Gently undulating plateau topography, with numerous small streams - often rising at springs or bogs - flowing through shallow valleys. The Lew meanders through a wider floodplain.
• Poorly drained, low-quality soils limiting agricultural use to improved grazing, usually on valley sides and around the edges of the DCA. Extensive tracts in the centre are either forestry or unimproved (e.g. Whiteleigh Meadow, Common Moor).
• Field patterns are generally regular, indicating relatively late enclosure from moorland and common. They are generally edged by low, square-cut beech hedgebanks.
• Extensive coniferous forests planted on areas of former grassland and heath/moor; much smaller, linear deciduous woodlands alongside streams and occasionally along lanes. The Lew Valley is more wooded.
• Extensive areas of rush pasture, fen meadow, grassland, heathland and mire communities which together comprise Culm grassland, supporting flowers, grasses, butterflies and ground-nesting birds.
• Several individual and clustered prehistoric bowl barrows in the south-west of the area add time depth to the landscape.
• Scattered farms (often down long access tracks) and occasional clustered historic villages.
• Roads generally straight, often flanked by rush-dominated roadside ditches and several mature hedgerow trees.
• The A3072 runs east-west across the area and the A3079 runs north-south, locally diluting levels of tranquillity. White wooden fingerposts mark junctions.
• Long views dominated by Dartmoor and Bodmin Moor, with a strong sense of openness.

Characteristically long, narrow lane flanked by flower-rich hedges with the canopy of several mature trees overhead.

White fingerpost at Terris Cross between Upcott and Woodhall in the east, signposting the Tarka Trail and National Cycle Network route 27.

Special qualities and features

Views looking southwards across to Dartmoor from elevated areas in the east of the DCA, including the popular viewpoint on Hatherleigh Moor.

Sense of remoteness and wildness, especially in areas of open grassland.

Pockets of high tranquillity away from main roads, Hatherleigh and villages; dark night skies throughout most of the area.

Extensive areas of nationally or internationally designated Culm grassland habitats, including Hollow Moor and Odham Moor Site of Special Scientific Interest and Special Area of Conservation - one of the largest continuous areas of unimproved Culm grassland in Devon.

Numerous County Wildlife Sites recognising further areas of nature conservation importance.

Hannaborough Quarry geological Site of Special Scientific Interest - a rare example of an exposed outcrop of volcanic lava.

Occasional ancient semi-natural woodlands, including Rutleigh Woods in the Lew valley.

Prehistoric barrows are designated Scheduled Monuments, including a barrow cemetery at Sandymoor Cross.

Medieval strip field system and associated hedgebanks around Black Torrington.

Conservation Area covering the historic core of Hatherleigh with numerous listed buildings (including the Grade I listed Church of St John the Baptist); other historic buildings scattered throughout the area.

Access / recreation facilities including plantations with open access and visitor facilities (e.g. parking and picnic areas at Cookworthy Forest and Circuit Moor Plantation) and numerous fishing lakes (e.g. Winsford and Clawford).

Cycle route following disused railway line through Whiteleigh Plantation; popular Tarka Trail recreational route crossing the east of the area; and National Cycle Network Route 3 to the west and Route 27 to the east.

Forces for change and their landscape implications

Past and current

• Coniferous plantations on heathland and grassland areas leading to a loss of Culm grassland habitat and changing the character and appearance of the landscape.
• Past enclosure and drainage of Culm grasslands for agricultural use, fragmenting Culm grasslands.
• Inconsistent and/or inappropriate grazing patterns on remaining areas of Culm grassland, resulting in under-grazed areas scrubbing up, whilst over-grazed areas become reduced to a uniform grass sward.
• Localised appearance of neglect as a result of ongoing decline in the agricultural economy (e.g. loss and degredation of hedgerows, derelict farm buildings and general farm 'clutter').
• Equine land uses and related infrastructure, with a subdivision of traditional field patterns using uncharacteristic fencing and pony tape.
• The impacts of woodlotting - large woodlands divided and sold as smaller parcels (sometimes with the addition of access tracks and fencing), leading to fragmentation of woodland habitat with varying levels of management.
• Increase in large scale agricultural buildings that are not obviously associated with existing farmsteads appear incongruous with the surrounding landscape.
• Tourism related farm diversification schemes (e.g. fishing lakes and camp sites) introducing new elements into the landscape.
• Introduction of some large agricultural buildings (often timber-clad) into the landscape as part of farm expansion.
• Small-scale residential development on the edges of existing settlement (e.g. Halwill Junction and Highhampton).
• Renewable energy schemes impacting landscape character and rural/tranquil characteristics (e.g. single farm wind turbines and a large solar farm south east of Hollacombe).
• Traffic on main roads (A3072 and A3079) impacting on levels of tranquillity.
• Effects of climate change resulting in wetter and warmer winters, and more frequent hot and dry periods increasing the risk of drought in summer, plus more frequent extreme weather such as storms with more intense rainfall causing flooding in the shallow valleys.

Future

• Forthcoming changes to agricultural subsidies, including the new Environmental Land Management scheme (ELMs) which will pay landowners for the delivery of public goods and services, including for the restoration of nature. This may affect the viability of farming on 'marginal' land such as Culm grasslands and moors, and management of features such as hedges and traditional farm buildings.
• Potential changes in the management and use of forestry plantations as their productive lifetimes are reached.
• Longer growing seasons and increased periods of drought (as a result of climate change) potentially affecting Culm grasslands and wetland habitats.
• Potential for increased woodland planting in catchment areas to improve water filtration/ quality/ storage and carbon sequestration, in line with the UK policy drive for more tree/woodland coverage.
• Change in woodland/tree species composition as new pests, diseases and pathogens spread (e.g. Phytopthora spp.) and species intolerant of water level extremes die back; both exacerbated by climate change.
• Potential loss of mature trees along roads and lanes as a result of over-maturity and storm throw (as a result of increased storminess through climate change).
• New woodland planting to meet carbon offsetting and biodiversity targets may be inappropriately designed and sited, resulting in changes to landscape character including loss of views.
• Increased levels of domestic tourism leading to demand for new tourism and leisure facilities including further camping (and glamping) sites and car parks.
• Continued settlement expansion, leading to increased visual impacts of small-scale development, particularly around visually prominent villages (e.g. Holsworthy, Hatherleigh and Highampton) and farmsteads.
• Continued demand for both domestic and commercial renewable energy schemes, including wind turbines on high ground and solar farms on south-facing slopes, bringing cumulative impacts on landscape character.

Far reaching view southwards from Staddon Moor over pasture fields, and the caravan park and large storage building at Headons Farm (beyond which there are wind turbines), towards Bodmin Moor in the distance.

Dairy cows grazing pasture with a new timber agricultural building visible, and a mixture of wooded copses, tree-lined hedgerows and scattered settlement in the background (e.g. Highhampton).

View from the south east over pasture towards Morecombe Planatation with two single farm wind turbine blades visible above the treetops.

Landscape guidelines

Protect

• Protect farming and land management traditions, continuing to support local farmers to graze the Culm grasslands and lowland moors as an integral part of their faming systems.
• Protect the existing sparse settlement pattern and ensure that development on settlement edges (e.g. Hatherleigh) does not affect the character of the area.
• Protect the setting and historic character of Holsworthy Conservation Area.
• Protect areas of open countryside and elevated land from intrusive development, conserving important views from high vantage points (including to Dartmoor National Park).
• Protect the rich cultural heritage of the area including the numerous tumuli on elevated sites. Introduce sensitive interpretation where appropriate.
• Protect traditional farm/agricultural buildings in the landscape. Encourage appropriate uses of rural buildings or their sympathetic conversion, including all associated works such as gardens, drives, Devon hedges, visibility splays and entrance detailing.

Neglected corrugated iron agricultural building north of Highhampton.

Manage

• Manage areas of Culm grassland (including wet pasture, heath, grassland and scrub habitats) through locally appropriate grazing and burning regimes whilst protecting their high wildlife importance.
• Manage hedgerows, especially where they have been gapped up with fencing; promote planting of locally distinctive beech in hedgerows and along roads. Retain and strengthen historic field patterns including the medieval strip fields at Black Torrington.
• Manage roadside rush-dominated drainage ditches and verges. Facilitate discussion with highways authorities and landowners to ensure that ditches and rush dominated verges are protected and managed to maximise their biodiversity potential (e.g. through reduced cutting cycles).
• Manage existing plantations for sustainable timber production and wildlife interest, creating new green links to surrounding semi-natural habitats as part of local nature recovery networks.
• Manage areas of ancient woodland using traditional techniques such as coppicing to promote a diverse age structure and rich ground flora.
• Manage archaeological sites, introducing interpretation where appropriate.

Plan

• Expand fragmented Culm grassland sites to create an intact nature recovery network where underlying geology and soil conditions allow. Link Culm grassland areas to other habitats to improve habitat connectivity and climate change resilience.
• Re-create new areas of moorland and Culm grassland as part of future plans to re-structure the area's conifer plantations. Where plantations continue to be productive, promote further edge planting of locally distinctive beech to assimilate the plantations into the landscape.
• Respond to the UK-wide policy drive for increased woodland planting. Encourage the establishment of new broadleaved woods and copses using native species, as well as mixed plantations to help screen recent development/incongruous features, without masking distinctive views or affecting areas of archaeological interest. Resist large-scale carbon offsetting schemes of monoculture woodland planting
• Link discrete areas of woodland to improve habitat connectivity and landscape structure. Follow the principles set out in 'Right Place, Right Tree' guidance published by the Devon Local Nature Partnership.
• Encourage opportunities for floodplain restoration/re-connection/enhancement in order to better manage flooding for downstream communities.
• Identify opportunities for enhancing agriculture as a result of market changes (including Brexit and increased demand for domestic food production) and the new Environmental Land Management Schemes.
• Explore further opportunities for access and recreation, including within the plantations and along disused railway lines, linking to existing recreational routes (including the Tarka Line).
• Ensure that residential development proposals on the edge of settlements (e.g. Hatherleigh) mitigate any negative impact on the local landscape character, semi-natural habitats or archaeological interest, and avoid encroachment onto open elevated ground.
• Ensure that new development in rural areas is sensitively sited (and screened with characteristic tree/hedge planting if appropriate) and reflects the local vernacular in terms of form and style, whilst incorporating sustainable design.
• Provide guidance for sensitive siting and design of new agricultural buildings, encourage 'clustering' of new development adjacent to existing farmsteads and avoiding open and exposed sites. Ensure that new development is well-integrated into its landscape setting to avoid adverse impacts on the landscape and visual amenities.
• Consider landscape and visual effects (including cumulative effects) of future renewable energy schemes and telecommunications infrastructure to mitigate negative impacts on local landscape character, carefully siting any new development away from where it will impact upon open views (including to Dartmoor and Bodmin Moor).

DCA 36 High Torridge Culm Plateau (PDF) [1MB]

Vegetated slopes and rocky coves on the east coast of the island.

Contextual description

This Devon Character Area (DCA) covers Lundy - a small (approximately 1km by 5km), flat-topped island located around 18km off the North Devon coast in the Bristol Channel. Its coastal edges are defined by dramatic cliffs which are exposed to the wind and waves of the Atlantic Ocean to the west, whilst the eastern side is more sheltered. The island forms an important focal point in views from the North Devon, Pembrokeshire and Gower coastlines. Lundy falls within Torridge District and is defined as its own Heritage Coast. It is owned by the National Trust and managed under a lease by the Landmark Trust.

Link to National Character Areas and Constituent Landscape Character Types

Constituent LCTs: 6 Offshore Islands

The island forms Lundy National Character Area (NCA 159).

Summary character description

Lundy is an isolated and unique place, surrounded by and dominated by the ever-changing sea. Remote and undeveloped, it is a 'sanctuary' away from the mainland. Its seascapes are dramatic, with sheer cliffs rising out of the water, battered into dramatic shapes by the force of the Atlantic breakers. The desolate, windswept moorland is alive with the sounds of crashing waves and the cries of the sea birds. The island's remoteness from 21st century life, and its sense of changelessness is enhanced by the extraordinary richness of its history. These historic sites provide a tangible link with the island's past, stretching as far back as prehistoric times.

Marisco Tavern in distinctive grey granite vernacular, with the square tower of St Helens Church behind.

Distinctive characteristics

• A flat-topped island (the largest in the Bristol Channel) formed primarily of Tertiary granite, with exposed Devonian slates along the south-east peninsula. Intrusions by vertical dykes reveal the island's volcanic past.
• Spectacular cliffs reaching over 100 metres, with small streams cascading down the cliff face.
• West coast battered by the waves and winds of the Atlantic, resulting in a rugged, exposed coastline with features including the Devil's Limekiln sea cave. The eastern side of the island is more sheltered with vegetated slopes and secluded rocky coves.
• Vegetation strongly influenced by maritime conditions and exposure to prevailing winds, with coastal grassland and scrub with sparse, stunted trees in the Millcombe valley and along parts of the east coast.
• Nationally important cliff-top habitats including heath and maritime grasslands with unique flora and fauna, including the endemic Lundy cabbage.
• Northern half of the plateau characterised by unenclosed heath and acid grassland, grazed by feral Soay sheep, goats, Lundy ponies and Sika deer.
• Small-scale in-bye fields in the centre and south of the island are enclosed by grey granite stone walls forming square fields.
• Supports seasonal colonies of seabirds, including Manx shearwaters, guillemots, razorbills, shags, gulls, storm petrels, and the emblematic puffin.
• A landscape of great time depth with a rich history and a concentration of nationally important archaeological sites, old granite buildings and legends of the island's chequered past.
• Village clustered at the south of the island with a unifying grey granite vernacular including the prominent 19th century church of St Helen. Granite stone also used in various other buildings across the island (many of which are listed) including the early 19th century lighthouse ('Old Light') and Tibbett's Hill lookout.
• An important seascape feature, visible from all along the North Devon coast, the tower of St Helens Church and old lighthouse forming prominent vertical elements above the plateau.
• The appearance and clarity of the island varies markedly in different weather conditions.
• Very high levels of tranquillity and dark night skies across the whole island.
• A unique cultural identity defined by a small close-knit working community, far removed from 21st century influences and with strong senses of isolation, self-sufficiency and spirituality.

Special qualities and features

A 'jewel in the view' and focal point in the wider seascape; key to the maritime settings of the North Devon Coast Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), Exmoor National Park, Gower AONB and Pembrokeshire Coast National Park.

Nationally and internationally important coastal and marine habitats host a diverse range of species, including seabirds, seals and the endemic Lundy cabbage.

Most of the island (apart from the small farmed area in the south) is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest for its maritime habitats and seal and sea bird colonies.

The waters surrounding the island are within a Marine Conservation Zone (MCZ), specifically for the protection of the spiny lobster Palinurus elephas.

The coasts and surrounding waters of the island are designated as Special Areas of Conservation for their outstanding offshore reef system.

Over 40 Scheduled Monuments covering ritual, industrial and defensive sites including Bronze Age burial mounds; early Christian inscribed standing stones; remains of the 13th century Maresco Castle and 19th century quarries and gun emplacements. To the east of the island are two Protected Wreck sites of Iona II and Gull Rock.

A highly popular destination for visitors, offering a range of experiences and recreational activities both above and below the water, including birdwatching, walking, 'Lundy letterboxing', climbing, diving, kayaking, paddle-boarding and snorkel trips.

Informal paths and extensive access land enable visitors to explore the island.

The island is designated as a Dark Sky Discovery Site and is one of the few remaining locations where views of shooting stars and the Milky Way can be seen.

Long, uninterrupted panoramic views across Bideford Bay to the North Devon coast, and northwards to South Wales.

Island at the mercy of the elements, and defined by the ever-present influence of the sea - offers a challenging and exhilarating 'wilderness' experience to visitors from the mainland.

Truly unique, with unrivalled levels of peace, tranquillity and dark night skies - a breathtaking sanctuary.

Coastal heathland and maritime grasslands are of national importance for nature conservation.

The quay and access road at the south of the island, with Lundy South Lighthouse perched in a prominent position on an outcrop extending from the main island.

Forces for change and their landscape implications

Past and current

• Fluctuations in numbers of grazing animals (as a result of changing changing agricultural policies) resulting in episodes of overgrazing by sheep, goats and deer; rabbit numbers are often also very high, although occasionally knocked back to very low levels by myxomatosis.
• Spread of rhododendron, particularly along the east coast, affecting the island's biodiversity; ongoing clearance to manage the species with the aim of eradication by 2025.
• Use of fencing - rather than traditional granite - to repair stone walls, changing the landscape character.
• Visitor pressure (up to 20,000 visitors per year) and resultant erosion of popular walking routes, increased wildlife disturbance and impact on tranquillity.
• Increased number of jet skiers travelling to and around the island, intermittently breaking levels of tranquillity and also raising concerns about wildlife disturbance.
• The access road from the quay to the village forms a prominent man-made feature on the south-eastern coastline.
• Arrival of some visitors by helicopter impacting on tranquillity, although these are low in frequency and duration.
• Recovery of seabird populations following the eradication of rats from the island, with the increased sight and sound of birds positively contributing to the valued naturalistic qualities of the island.

Future

• Ongoing pressure from increasing number of visitors, leading to increased erosion, incidences of wildlife disturbance and impact on tranquillity, and potentially requiring additional infrastructure.
• Uncertain levels of income for the Landmark Trust following the Covid-19 pandemic, potentially impacting on funds available for island conservation.
• Potential reduction in numbers of grazing animals (as a result of uncertainty over agricultural funding and support) leading to a loss/decline in coastal grassland and heathland habitats and their associated species.
• Potential sea level rise and increased rate of coastal erosion as a result of climate change, leading to cliff instability, more frequent landslides, the 'squeeze' of coastal habitats and potential loss of cliff-top archaeology, as well as the potential future erosion of the landing quay and access road.
• Impacts of climate change on the island's unique habitats and species, including an increased prevalence of pests, diseases and invasive species.
• Demand for offshore renewables, particularly wind farms and tidal energy schemes, impacting on Lundy's special qualities, and views to and from the island.

Overgrazing by Soay sheep, as well as ponies, goats and rabbits is an ongoing management issue on the island.

Landscape guidelines

Protect

• Protect the undeveloped, open and isolated character of Lundy.
• Protect the island's dramatic seascapes, with their expansive views across the open sea to the North Devon and South Wales coasts.
• Protect the island's special role in as a seascape feature in views from the sea and from the North Devon coast, with Old Light and St Helena's church tower standing out as landmark features.
• Protect the characteristic vernacular of buildings constructed from grey Lundy granite, ensuring building repairs and restoration are sympathetically undertaken using the same materials and building styles where possible. Keep visitor signage and infrastructure to a minimum to protect the island's special character.
• Protect, sensitively manage and - where appropriate - restore the landscape's rich and varied archaeological heritage, including through the careful monitoring of grazing and access levels.
• Protect the ecologically-rich offshore reefs which surround the island.

Manage

• Manage the island's nationally important coastal heathland, maritime grassland and wetland habitats and unique species (such as the Lundy cabbage), ensuring grazing levels by domestic, feral and wild animals are controlled at appropriate levels.
• Manage (and restore where necessary) the distinctive granite stone wall field boundaries around Lundy's in-bye land, seeking to reinstate lengths where fencing is currently used for stock protection.
• Manage characteristic areas of stunted woodland in the Millcombe Valley and along parts of the east coast, continuing to control and eradicate invasive species such as rhododendron and protecting sensitive areas from grazing damage.
• Manage agriculture on the island, ensuring that the menu at the Tavern continues to strongly feature Lundy produce as an important source of income.
• Manage visitor numbers to minimise damage to fragile habitats and important historic assets, and attain a sustainable balance between conservation and recreational interests, ensuring the special qualities of the island are retained.

Plan

• Plan for the impacts of a changing climate on Lundy's coastline, allowing natural processes to take place wherever practical.
• Use existing interpretation spaces to explain how the impacts of climate change are likely to affect the island and its surrounding seascape.
• Plan for the potential demand for offshore energy developments in the surrounding waters, so that these can be sited in appropriate locations and their landscape, seascape and visual impacts minimised.
• Explore opportunities to restore/enhance coastal heath and maritime grassland habitats to return them to favourable condition. Increase the diversity of habitats for the benefit of biodiversity and to improve resilience to climate change.
• Utilise the new Environmental Land Management Schemes and other initiatives (as they emerge) to manage and enhance the wildlife interest of the farmed landscape and contribute to nature recovery networks
• Promote sustainable tourism through education/raising awareness/engagement activities and through enforcement of the visitor Code of Conduct.

DCA 38 Lundy (PDF) [1MB]

View north across Woolacombe Bay from Putsborough. © North Devon Coast AONB - photographer Neville Stanikk.

Contextual description

This is a relatively small Devon Character Area (DCA) comprising the westward facing coast and its hinterland between Saunton Down and Morte Point. To the north is a gradual transition to the North Devon High Coast DCA (where the downland landform is less dominant and there is more woodland) and to the east is another gradual transition to the North Devon Downs DCA. This transition is marked by a gradual reduction in the influence of the sea. To the south is the flat, estuarine landscape of the Taw-Torridge Estuary. All of the landscape is within the North Devon Coast Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and is defined as Heritage Coast. Saunton Down and Croyde are within the buffer zone of the North Devon Biosphere Reserve.

Link to National Character Areas and Constituent Landscape Character Types

Constituent LCTs: 2C Steep Open Slopes, 4C Coastal Slopes and Combes with Settlement, 4E Extensive Inter-Tidal Sands, 4F Dunes, 4I Rocky Foreshores, 4H Cliffs and 5C Downland.

This DCA falls within the Exmoor National Character Area (NCA 145).

Summary character description

This is a landscape of contrasts, dominated by its seascape. There are wide westerly views to the sea, with the long, low outline of Lundy visible on the horizon, and views across Bideford Bay as far as Hartland Point. A series of rolling downland ridges run on to long headlands interspersed with sandy beaches. The smooth downland has an elevated, open, character, whilst the rough headlands feel wild, remote and windswept. The beaches are crowded with holidaymakers in summer, but in winter they feel empty and desolate. This is a colourful landscape - green fields; golden sands; vivid purple and yellow heath; brown and grey rocks; and glorious sunsets - but its mood is always set by the ever-changing sea.

Baggy Point from Woolacombe Down. © North Devon Coast AONB.

Distinctive characteristics

• Northern part of area underlain by fossil-rich Devonian Morte slates, and the southern part by Devonian red and brown sandstone.
• Topography forming a repeating pattern of smooth-profiled downland ridges with steep side slopes, running east-west.
• Ridges running into long headlands (Morte Point, Baggy Point and Saunton Down) with smooth upper profiles and rocky sides descending to rugged shorelines.
• Headlands sheltering a series of sandy beaches, including Croyde Bay and Woolacombe Sands.
• Occasional spring-fed streams flowing through relatively steep valleys to the sea.
• Distinctive coastal character with a strong transition from the rolling downland to the jagged, rocky ridgeline extending to Morte Point.
• An open, expansive landscape with few trees and smooth horizons; trees largely limited to occasional wind-sculpted pines, and patches of scrub; tree Clump at Oxford Cross (originally planted by Henry Williamson) is a distinctive feature.
• Agriculture predominantly pastoral (sheep grazing), with some arable land on sheltered sites and further inland.
• Smaller fields divided by hedges or hedgebanks (often faced with local Morte slates) on lower land, but larger, more open and regular fields on higher land.
• Important ecological mosaic of coastal heath, maritime cliff and foreshore habitats, supporting valuable and diverse populations of birds, insects, reptiles, plants, ferns and lichens.
• Active dune systems at Croyde and Woolacombe Warren supporting a wide variety of plants; further inland, unimproved grassland that supports grass, herb, butterfly and bird species.
• Historic landscape features include 14th century cultivation terraces above Saunton (Scheduled Monument), and historic field patterns around Croyde, Mortehoe and Georgeham, where hedges or stone-faced banks (including distinctive examples faced with Morte slate) create narrow strip fields.
• A lookout post on the cliffs near Putsborough, and chain of 'dummy pillboxes' along Baggy Point, reflect the area's strong associations with the Second World War
• Distinctive traditional buildings with cob, thatch, local stone and hung slates (the latter particularly in exposed locations). The Grade I listed churches at Georgeham and Mortehoe form local landmarks.
• Victorian linear expansion of settlements such as Woolacombe and Croyde for tourism. Modern caravan and holiday parks on hillsides detract from the traditional character and tranquillity.
• Panoramic views across the bay from Morte Point and Baggy Point. Views to Hartland Point Headland and the distinctive long, low profile of Lundy Island on the horizon. Distant views to Worm's Head (in the Gower, Wales) can also be experienced.

Characteristic narrow lane enclosed by sparsely topped Devon hedgebanks, south of Pickwell.

Special qualities and features

A landscape of very high scenic quality, being within the North Devon Coast AONB and North Devon Heritage Coast, with spectacular coastal views and seascapes encompassing magnificent beaches and dramatic cliffs.

High levels of tranquillity away from settlements.

Important maritime and coastal habitats including Saunton to Baggy Point Coast Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI - cliffs, foreshore and small active dune system) and Morte SSSI (extensive area of sea cliff and foreshore).

The coastline is within the Exmoor Coasts and Heaths Important Bird Area, with coastal heath and grassland habitats supporting nesting seabirds including fulmar, cormorant and shag.

The coastline adjoins the Bideford to Foreland Point Marine Conservation Zone (MCZ), valued for its range of intertidal habitats and for providing connectivity between North Devon and Cornwall MCZ sites.

Many County Wildlife Sites, including unimproved grasslands and the sand dune system at Woolacombe Warren.

Exposed geological features (including the remains of a fossilised fish preserved within bands of volcanic ash and shale) designated as SSSIs or Regionally Important Geological Sites.Several wreck sites lying off the coast, including the HMS Weazle and the Ceres.

Numerous listed buildings, including manor houses, farms, churches and the white painted Saunton Sands Hotel, which is an example of the Art Deco style.

Conservation Areas covering the village cores of Croyde, Georgeham, Putsborough, Woolacombe and Mortehoe.

Saunton Court (designed by Edwin Lutyens) listed Grade II on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens.

Literary associations with Henry Williamson, who wrote Tarka the Otter whilst living in Georgeham.

Large areas of land owned by the National Trust, including the Croyde Estate (Baggy Point) and part of the Mortehoe Estate (from Woolacombe Down to Morte Point).

Extensive access land along the coast and South West Coast Path following the cliff edges.

A popular holiday destination, with beaches packed with visitors in the summer and attractions including surfing events and the National Sandcastle Competition.

Forces for change and their landscape implications

Past and current

• Post-war intensification of agriculture spurred on by CAP-related subsidies in the 1970s, leading to field enlargement and a spread of intensive arable cultivation along some downland farmland backing the cliffs.
• Poor maintenance of stone-faced hedgebanks, resulting in their gradual loss from the landscape.
• Loss of species-rich coastal grassland and heath to scrub and bracken through changes in grazing practices and abandonment of marginal land (e.g. coastal cliff slopes at Challacombe Hill).
• Land management projects on National Trust land including fenceless grazing of dunes on Woolacombe Down by native cattle breeds to improve the quality of the semi-natural habitats and the current grassland project, restoring and creating species rich-grasslands on the slopes above Woolacombe.
• Increasing levels of tourism-related development such as holiday parks, hotels, caravan/camping sites and related infrastructure, affecting the wild character and dark skies of the area - particularly as development extends into prominent, elevated locations (e.g. Woolacombe Bay).
• Holiday parks extending into undeveloped areas of the coast and its hinterland, and becoming more permanent - e.g. the change from touring pitches to static caravans and permanent lodges.
• High volumes of tourist traffic (particularly on coastal roads such as the B3231 and the Esplanade), seasonally reducing the tranquillity of the area.
• Damage to coastal heath and dune systems as a result of trampling.
• Some WWII pillboxes and a 17th century burial ground for shipwrecked sailors have been lost to the sea along the fast-eroding virgin cliff between Downend and Chesil Point.
• Military activity on Braunton Burrows to the south (within the adjacent Taw-Torridge Estuary DCA) occasionally impacting upon the wild and tranquil qualities of the landscape.
• Telecoms masts (including those on Saunton Down and Ora Hill) interrupting the smooth profile of the downland. Some overhead lines around Mortehoe and Woolacombe have already been removed with investment from Western Power.
• Conversion of traditional agricultural buildings to modern residential properties (many of which are holiday lets) resulting in a change to their character and setting.
• Light pollution from larger towns to the south affecting the experience of dark night skies and reducing the visibility of stars.
• Intrusion of built development in settlements such as Westward Ho! into views southwards across the Taw-Torridge Estuary.
• The turbines of Fullabrook Down Wind Farm in DCA 44 form strongly visible moving structures on the skyline in easterly views, impacting on perceptions of remoteness.
• Changes in building style from traditional designs to large, modern style architecture with large windows. Most prevalent in Croyde and along Saunton Row overlooking the beach.
• Effects of climate change resulting in wetter and warmer winters, and more frequent hot and dry periods increasing the risk of drought in summer, plus more frequent extreme weather events such as storms, and sea level rise as result of increasing global temperatures.

Future

• Forthcoming changes to agricultural subsidies, including the new Environmental Land Management scheme which will pay landowners for the delivery of public goods and services, including for the restoration of nature.
• Actions arising from the North Devon UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Nature Recovery Plan, 2021-25 which aim to make space for nature, restore ecosystems and increase landscape dynamism by integrating nature recovery into the management of land within the Biosphere.
• Continued growth in popularity of the area for tourism and recreation, with associated impacts on tranquillity, traffic congestion and remaining areas of undeveloped coast.
• The future designation of the England Coast Path.
• Increasing popularity of the seascape for surfing and other watersports, bringing potential for wildlife disturbance (including grey seals which haul out at Morte Point). These concerns are being communicated and addressed voluntarily through a Code of Conduct developed and promoted by the North Devon Biosphere Reserve.
• Increasing demand for larger residential development, extending beyond existing settlement boundaries or replacing existing buildings with a scale and architectural style that is not always sympathetic to the setting and character of the area.
• Impacts of climate change on characteristic open maritime grassland and coastal heathland habitats, with potentially increased growth rates accelerating the spread of scrub, as well as an increased prevalence of pests and diseases.
• Increased coastal erosion as a result of rising sea levels, and increased strength and frequency of storms, which could result in the loss of beach and dune systems, and 'coastal squeeze' of habitats such as Woolacombe Warren between the eroding shoreline and agricultural land behind. The current Shoreline Management Plan policy is for 'no active intervention' and to allow natural processes to take place along this coast.
• Loss of sand dunes, resulting from higher sea levels, and greater wave energy due to increased frequency and intensity of storms. Changes may also occur in the volumes of sand being deposited.
• Coastal erosion/squeeze may also result in the loss of undesignated heritage assets and recreational facilities including the South West Coast Path. Coastal properties at Putsborough (protected by rock armour) may be at risk.
• Potential changes in the water table may affect dune systems and artificially-drained areas in adjacent landscapes such as Braunton Marsh.
• Continued demand for renewable energy schemes, including tidal and wave power, offshore and onshore wind turbines, solar farms and smaller-scale domestic schemes, all potentially affecting the character of the area with a cumulative impact on landscape character and views.

New tree planting on farmed slopes east of Croyde.

Scrub encroachment on steeper ungrazed slopes on Challacombe Hill.

Landscape guidelines

Protect

• Protect the area's distinctive seascapes which contribute to the coastal character of the area.
• Protect the open character of the area and its long-ranging views, resisting the further linear spread of tourist development from settlements. Avoid new developments on the cliff edge.
• Protect the smooth profiles of open downland which form the backdrop to the area, ensuring new development avoids the most prominent open skylines and far-reaching views.
• Protect traditionally farmed areas and resist further agricultural intensification.
• Protect and appropriately manage the landscape's archaeological features, including ancient cultivation terraces on the slopes above Saunton, historic quarries and World War II features. Manage scrub encroachment by supporting extensive grazing at appropriate levels, and protect the sites from erosion by managing public access.
• Protect historic settlements from unsympathetic expansion and avoid the loss of locally distinctive buildings to redevelopment.
• Protect traditional building styles and materials, particularly cob, Morte slate, thatch, whitewash and stone; ensure that any new development is sympathetic in terms of style and location, whilst incorporating sustainable design.
• Protect the character of the winding rural lanes, resisting intrusive signage and unsympathetic highways improvements. Promote sustainable transport options to reduce traffic levels during busy holiday periods.
• Protect and manage the historic gardens at Saunton Court, replacing mature specimen trees when necessary.
• Protect the sense of tranquillity and dark night skies. Explore opportunities to introduce mitigation to areas where this is an existing issue (e.g. light pollution from highway infrastructure and existing settlements).

Manage

• Manage, extend and re-link the diverse range of nationally important coastal habitats (including heath, dunes and coastal grassland) to enhance their biodiversity, and increase their resilience to rising sea levels and more extreme weather events.
• Increase the areas of coastal heathland on Woolacombe Down, Saunton Down and Baggy Point, and create buffer zones between cliff communities and improved agricultural land where possible.
• Manage agricultural land and sustain agricultural use, encouraging farmers to repair features such as hedgerows and hedgebanks, and to graze 'marginal' areas such as coastal grassland and heath as integral parts of their farming systems.
• Manage active sand dune systems through appropriate levels of grazing and access.
• Manage visitor pressure to minimise damage to fragile habitats and achieve a sustainable balance between conservation and recreational interests.
• Manage recreational use of the area both on land and in the water to ensure that habitats and wildlife and conserved. Promote the Code of Conduct developed by the North Devon Biosphere Reserve.
• Manage the network of distinctive stone-faced hedges, restoring lost lengths to reinforce historic field patterns. Ensure any new sections replicate traditional styles of construction (e.g. patterns of stone facing) and species composition.

Plan

• Reduce and/or mitigate the visual impact of existing and future tourist facilities such as caravan parks, particularly in prominent locations.
• Ensure new facilities and infrastructure to meet increased tourism demand are sensitively sited and designed to conserve and enhance the distinctive characteristics, valued attributes and special qualities of the landscape that make it attractive to visitors.
• Encourage sensitive tourism and recreation activity, seeking to link and create access routes with the aim of encouraging exploration of inland landscapes and taking pressure off the coast.
• Develop sustainable transport systems to reduce the number of cars on roads. This could be achieved through facilitating more active travel (particularly walking and cycling), through improved Green Infrastructure networks linking the landscape with local settlements, including Braunton), and tourism 'shuttle services' from coastal resorts to places of interest.
• Mitigate the effects of climate change, particularly coastal squeeze, seeking to expand and link semi-natural habitats and wildlife networks as part of local nature recovery networks.
• Plan for the future effects of climate change along the coast, allowing natural processes to take place as much as possible, whilst ensuring local people are involved in decision-making relating to future landscapes.
• Plan for the impact of tree pests and diseases on the landscape and replace lost trees with resilient specimens.
• Utilise the new Environmental Land Management Schemes and other initiatives (as they emerge) to manage and enhance the wildlife interest of the farmed landscape and contribute to nature recovery networks.
• Respond to changes to agriculture as a result of market pressures and post-Brexit changes to support payments. New crops may become viable and the potential landscape impacts of these should be considered.
• Plan for future need for energy and telecoms infrastructure in the area including masts and onshore and offshore renewable energy installations, so that these can be sited in appropriate locations and their impacts mitigated through careful design. Ensure plans for new renewable energy developments consider landscape and visual effects, including cumulative effects.
• Ensure future settlement expansion is sensitively sited and designed to avoid detrimental landscape impacts. Seek to mitigate the impacts of existing unsympathetic development, for example through new tree/hedgerow planting.
• Embrace opportunities for tree/woodland planting in the landscape as part of the UK-wide policy drive for increased woodland planting. These include opportunities for improved woodland management and new planting/natural regeneration on coastal slopes, where grazing levels have declined in recent decades. New landscape-led planting should align with the Devon Local Nature Partnership's 'Right Place, Right Tree' guidance.
• Avoid locating new woodland where it would have a detrimental impact on the iconic views to and from this landscape.
• Create, extend and link woodland and wetland habitats to enhance the water storage capacity of the landscape (reducing future incidences of downstream flooding) and improve water quality through reducing soil erosion and agricultural run-off.
• Create green infrastructure links to and from the landscape's coastal resorts and the South West Coast Path, to facilitate more recreational opportunities, reduce the use of private cars, and enhance the natural setting of development.

DCA 43 North Devon Coastal Downs (PDF) [1MB]

Looking towards Mullacott AONB boundary across a rolling patchwork of hedgerow-bound fields. © North Devon Coast AONB.

Contextual description

This Devon Character Area (DCA) is located to the north of Barnstaple and comprises high open farmland interspersed with secluded wooded valleys. To the north is the North Devon High Coast DCA with its coastal combes; to the east a gradual transition to the wooded, intricate landscapes of the Exmoor Fringe DCA; to the south a gradual transition to the Codden Hill and Wooded Estates, and a more abrupt transition (marked by the change in topography) to the Taw-Torridge Estuary DCA. Finally, to the west is a gradual transition (with increasing coastal influence) to the North Devon Coastal Downs DCA. All of the landscape is within North Devon District.

Link to National Character Areas and Constituent Landscape Character Types

Constituent LCTs: 3C Sparsely Settled Farmed Valley Floors, 3H Secluded Valleys and 5C Downland.

This DCA falls within the Exmoor National Character Area (NCA 145).

Summary character description

This is a simple, agricultural landscape dominated by the sky within an open, westerly aspect. The smooth hills have rounded profiles, and are covered by a patchwork of large, regular fields. Views are long and wide, sometimes with glimpses of the sea or estuary as a backdrop. The steep valleys which punctuate the downland (LCT 3H) run like wooded ribbons across the landscape, contrasting with the farmland in their rich colours and textures. These valleys have a secluded and secretive character. They are very tranquil, the only sounds often being birds and running water; and their sunken lanes have a timeless quality.

Pastoral fields enclosed by hedgerows on valley slopes east of Goodleigh.

Distinctive characteristics

• Northern and coastal areas underlain by banks of resistant Morte slate; southern parts underlain by softer banks of sandstone, shales and mudstone, resulting in more undulating topography.
• Rolling downland with broad rounded ridges and hilltops, sloping in the south to meet Barnstaple and the Taw-Torridge estuary.
• Springs and small streams in steep-sided, V-shaped valleys, and combes carving through the downland.
• Strongly agricultural landscape, with a rural character, pastoral fields in valleys, and a mixture of pastoral and arable use on better quality soils on higher land.
• Mixture of medium-sized curving medieval fields (particularly in valleys) and larger post-medieval and modern fields with straight boundaries; some remaining areas of open downland.
• Fields divided by grassy Devon banks with wind-pruned gorse and scrub (in areas of coastal exposure), flower-rich banks with mixed-species hedges, locally distinctive Morte slate-faced banks, and square-cut beech hedgebanks in locations closer to Exmoor.
• Post-and-wire fences enclose some of the more intensively farmed fields.
• Valley sides often densely wooded with sessile oak woods, beech-dominated broadleaved woodland, wet woodland on valley floors, and some conifer plantations.
• Sparse woodland cover on upland areas, limited to occasional blocks of coniferous plantation, small farm woods and wind-sculpted pine shelterbelts. Sporadic beech clumps and avenues mark prominent ridgelines (e.g. above Shirwell Cross).
• Extensive areas of valley-side ancient woodland, plus fragmented species-rich acidic and neutral grassland, rush pasture, scrub and bracken.
• Clusters of nationally important prehistoric features including barrows on ridgelines and Iron Age hillforts near Knowle and Burridge.
• Parkland estates in the southern parts of the area lending a softer, designed character and providing rich wildlife habitats notable for their lichens, wood decay invertebrates and rare bats.
• Stone bridges, mills, weirs, and disused quarries reflect the valleys' industrial heritage.
• Strong vernacular including cream and whitewashed cob/render; exposed local stone with slate roofs, and some thatch (e.g. at Heanton, Punchardon and Prixford).
• Characteristic square stone church towers in villages forming local landmarks, some of which are Grade I listed, notably at Marwood, Shirwell, West Down and Heanton Punchardon.
• Dispersed farmsteads sited in dips in the landform and small nucleated villages and hamlets located in tributary valleys and around crossroads. Much of the area remains undeveloped.
• Caravan and holiday parks, as well as other tourism-related land uses such as fishing lakes, influence character especially in locations close to coast.
• Straight roads enclosed by hedgebanks across upland areas, with occasional gaps providing long views across the landscape; steep, twisting valley roads between fern-rich banks.
• Expansive views from hill summits westwards to the coast and estuary and eastwards towards Exmoor National Park, contrasting with the secluded and intimate character of the valleys.
• Turbines at Fullabrook Down Wind Farm and Mullacott Cross Business Park, as well as communication masts at Shirwell Cross, form prominent vertical features on the skyline.

Long view west towards the coast from Shirwell Road near Coxleigh Barton.

Special qualities and features

High scenic quality, with northern parts of the area contributing to the setting of the North Devon Coast Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and Exmoor National Park.

Smooth rolling skylines that form the backdrop and setting to surrounding settlements and protected landscapes.

Historic field systems enclosed by relict medieval hedgebanks, a locally distinctive landscape feature.

Bradiford Valley Site of Special Scientific Interest, with ancient oak woodland, mill pond, leat, stream and meadow habitats.

Extensive areas of ancient semi-natural woodland on valley sides and numerous County Wildlife Sites.

Several Regionally Important Geological Sites covering geological exposures, including at Vyse and Bittadon Quarries and a geological SSSI at Plaistow Quarry18th-century.

Large numbers of Scheduled Monuments - including prehistoric barrows, camps, hillforts and earthworks - often in prominent elevated positions in the landscape.

18th century registered parkland at Youlston Park (Grade II) and Castle Hill estate (Grade I), of national significance for the number of veteran and ancient trees supported. Part of the National Trust-owned Arlington Court estate also falls within the DCA.

Conservation Areas covering the historic village cores of Ashford, Heaton Punchardon, Marwood and West Down. Listed churches with landmark square towers including at Marwood, Goodleigh, West Down, Heanton Punchardon, and Shirwell.

Locally high levels of tranquillity, especially in the secluded valleys away from settlements and major roads.

A good network of lanes, tracks and public rights of way providing recreational access, including sections of the Tarka Trail and Macmillan Way.

Marwood Hill Gardens are open to the public and incorporate a diverse collection of plants.

Forces for change and their landscape implications

Past and current

• Recreation pressures, including visually intrusive caravan parks and tourist development in areas close to the coast (e.g. East Stowford Barton).
• Increased farm, industrial and recreational traffic on rural roads, reducing tranquillity and damaging hedgebanks.
• Decline in woodland management reducing age- and species-diversity, and localised replanting of ancient oak woodland with conifers, particularly in the secluded valleys.
• Loss of mature trees and woodland from pests and disease such as ash dieback ash dieback (Hymenoscyphus fraxineus) disease.
• Agricultural intensification, resulting in increase of land in arable cultivation, loss of hedgerows and other wildlife habitats, and scrubbing-up of under-grazed marginal land on steep valley sides.
• Past hedgerow removal and replacement with post-and-wire fencing, affecting the integrity of field patterns.
• Construction of visually prominent, large-scale buildings (barns, industrial estates, etc.) changing the open and undeveloped character of the landscape.
• New residential developments using materials and styles that are not in keeping with the local vernacular
• Modern development on settlement edges (e.g. Barnstaple, Braunton, Northam and Westward Ho!) can be seen in views across the Taw-Torridge Estuary.
• Light spill from surrounding settlements, impacting on the experience of dark night skies and reducing the visibility of stars.
• The cumulative impact of vertical skyline features on hills summits including telecommunications masts, the wind farms at Fullabrook Down and Mullacott Business Park, as well as occasional farm-based turbines.
• Solar farms becoming more frequent within the landscape, often associated with farms, including at West Hill Farm (approx.19 ha), Hartland View (5 ha) and Barton Close Farm (5 ha).

Turbines at Fullabrook Down Wind Farm near Halsinger form prominent vertical features on the elevated plateau which has an otherwise smooth profile.

Future

• Uncertain, but opportunistic, future for the agricultural economy - the form of future agri-environment support through emerging Environmental Land Management scheme, nature of food production demands and market prices for farmed products, including as a result of Brexit, is unclear.
• Potential for new food crops (e.g. vineyards) and other crop types (medicinal, bio-energy) appearing in the landscape as a result of a change in climate and market conditions.
• Increase in UK-based tourism and recreation (intensified as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic) with associated requirements for new facilities and infrastructure, including farm conversions and more camping/caravan sites, as well as an increase in traffic.
• Population increases in nearby settlements (e.g. Braunton, Barnstaple and Goodleigh) resulting in pressure for new residential and commercial developments.
• Potential loss of or change in oak and beech-dominated valley woodlands due to spread of Phytophthora or other pests and diseases linked to changing climate, intolerance of water level extremes and more frequent storm events.
• Hedgerow trees, beech clumps, avenues and veteran parkland trees may become increasingly susceptible to damage from the increasing frequency and magnitude of storm events.
• Longer growing season and faster growth of bracken, gorse and secondary woodland resulting in a decrease in remaining areas of acidic and neutral grassland and rush pasture.
• More intense periods of drought leading to the drying out of important wetland habitats, including rush pasture.
• Increased autumn and winter precipitation levels leading to higher water levels and seasonal flooding in the valleys.
• Further renewable energy schemes, including offshore and onshore wind turbines, solar arrays on south-facing slopes, small-scale hydro-power and domestic-scale renewables impacting on character and views.

Wind turbines at Fullabrook Down dominate views north-west from Garmans Down (north of Shirwell).

Landscape guidelines

Protect

• Protect the landscape's far-reaching views (including those to the coast and Exmoor National Park) and flowing open skylines, avoiding unsympathetically sited development. Ensure local church towers remain landmark features on skylines.
• Protect and appropriately manage the landscape's archaeological heritage including prehistoric burial sites and ancient hilltop enclosures, providing sensitive interpretation where appropriate.
• Protect and repair characteristic traditional built heritage features (e.g. stone bridges).
• Protect and manage the landscape's historic parkland estates, ensuring that the location of any new development does not affect their setting or designed views.
• Protect parkland trees from damage to their root systems through ploughing or agricultural inputs. Retain veteran trees as wildlife habitats and new generations of open grown trees should be encouraged.
• Protect the sparse settlement pattern of farmsteads and nucleated villages and hamlets nestled in valleys and landform dips.
• Protect the character of rural lanes, resisting intrusive signage, lighting and unsympathetic highway works.
• Protect the landscape's undeveloped, rural character and high levels of tranquillity through the control and management of development, including highways and associated lighting.
• Protect the dark night skies that are characteristic of the area. Explore opportunities to limit light pollution around settlements and along major road corridors such as the A361 and A39.

Manage

• Manage and enhance the landscape's valley-side ancient woodlands using traditional techniques such as coppicing to maximise age diversity and to achieve a species diversity appropriate to the local conditions. Control access by livestock, promoting natural regeneration to enhance longevity whilst using extensive grazing to promote the species diversity of woodland ground flora.
• Manage the beech clumps and pine shelterbelts which form characteristic features within the open landscape.
• Manage and enhance species-rich Devon hedgebanks through the regular coppicing of characteristic wind-sculpted hedgerow trees and re-laying of gappy sections to reinforce irregular medieval field patterns.
• Replace lost lengths of field boundary, respecting traditional bank styles and species composition, particularly in locations perpendicular to slopes, to help reduce soil erosion and run-off into watercourses.
• Manage and enhance the wildlife interest of agricultural fields by encouraging the creation of uncultivated field margins, reducing hedge cutting cycles, introducing grass buffer strips around intensively farmed fields and other wildlife-friendly farming methods (also reducing diffuse pollution draining from the downland).
• Manage and re-link fragmented patches of species-rich grassland and rush pasture, supporting farmers to extensively graze these areas as integral parts of their farming systems.
• Manage the scale and distribution of renewable energy developments, (particularly farm-based wind and solar schemes) to ensure they do not cumulatively become a key characteristic of the landscape.

Plan

• Plan for farm diversification and changes to agriculture as a result of market pressures (including Brexit and increased demand for domestic food production) and the new Environmental Land Management schemes.
• New crops may become viable as a result a changing climate and the potential landscape impacts of these should be considered.
• Respond to the UK-wide policy drive for woodland planting in line with the Devon Local Nature Partnership Right Place, Right Tree guidance to ensure the distinctive characteristics of the landscape are retained and enhanced, whilst contributing to the provision of sustainable timber supplies, ecosystem services (including access and recreation), and nature recovery networks.
• Avoid new woodland planting where trees would adversely affect valued characteristics of the landscape including prominent hilltop monuments, long views and the expansive, open character of higher ground. Plan new planting in line with Devon Local Nature Partnership's Right Place, Right Tree principles.
• Plan for the diversification and future sustainability of conifer plantations in the landscape, exploring options for mixed stocking, the restoration of open habitats such as species-rich grasslands and opportunities for access/recreation.
• Create, link and extend woodland and wetland habitats to benefit landscape character, enhance the water storage capacity of the landscape (reducing incidences of downstream flooding) and improve water quality by reducing soil erosion and agricultural run-off. Natural woodland regeneration should be encouraged, and new planting (using climate-hardy species) undertaken to link fragmented sites.
• Develop green infrastructure links within and between coastal settlements, creating opportunities for sustainable access and recreation inland, to take pressure off popular coastal destinations.
• Plan to accommodate an increasing local population. Ensure new residential development is carefully sited and designed in accordance with sustainable development principles and in-keeping with local vernacular styles/materials, with new development appropriately linked to facilities and infrastructure.
• Where possible, implement landscape mitigation measures to soften the visual impact of existing poorly sited/designed development.
• Ensure that any new development respects local vernacular building styles and settlement forms, whilst incorporating sustainable design.
• Plan for increased amounts of tourism and access (including within the valley woodlands), along with related demand for facilities including accommodation, access and transport links.
• Ensure new energy and telecoms infrastructure (including masts and renewable energy installations), are sited in appropriate locations and their impacts mitigated through careful design.
• Explore the potential for small-scale hydro-electric power from the area's streams, avoiding adverse effects on ecology and landscape.

DCA 44 North Devon Downs (PDF) [1MB]

Rocky cove at Lee Bay

Contextual description

This Devon Character Area (DCA) comprises the north-facing coastline around Ilfracombe. To the east is the boundary with Exmoor National Park and to the south is a gradual transition into the North Devon Downs DCA. To the south-west is the North Devon Coastal Downs DCA. The boundary between the North Devon High Coast and the North Devon Coastal Downs DCAs is marked by the change in the aspect and orientation of the coastline. Apart from Ilfracombe and its surrounding hinterland, all of the landscape is within the North Devon Coast Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) and is defined as Heritage Coast. The entire DCA is within North Devon District.

Link to National Character Areas and Constituent Landscape Character Types

Constituent LCTs: 4C Coastal Slopes and Combes with Settlement, 4H Cliffs, 4I Rocky Foreshores and 5C Downland.

This DCA falls within the Exmoor National Character Area (NCA 145).

Summary character description

This is an area of spectacular seascapes, with a rugged coastline containing a series of jagged rocky headlands and small coves with grey shingle beaches. There is a sense of remoteness across the western part of the area with extensive areas of colourful coastal heath and grassland, and prehistoric standing stones indicating a long history of settlement. The surroundings of Ilfracombe are more developed; its imposing Victorian architecture reflecting its evolution as a holiday destination. The enclosed, wooded coastal combes (each with their own unique character) cut through rolling, agricultural downland to the sea. Trees soften the windswept landscape of the open downland below the ridge tops.

Tunnels Beaches at Ilfracombe, viewed from the South West Coast Path.

Distinctive characteristics

• Underlying geology (exposed at the coast) of hard Devonian shales and sandstones, with banks of fossil-rich limestone.
• Dramatic and distinctive seascapes with a rugged coastline of jagged headlands and small bays of grey shingle and views across the Bristol channel to the South Wales Coast.
• Deep, steep-sided, branching combes with fast-flowing streams travelling to the sea, separated by broad, rounded ridges of agricultural land.
• Agricultural land generally of medium quality on higher land in pastoral use, with occasional arable.
• Field patterns generally older and less regular on valley sides and more recent and rectangular on higher land, indicating the later enclosure of downland.
• Fossilised medieval strip field patterns, especially around Combe Martin, providing a sense of time-depth.
• Valley fields generally enclosed by high hedgebanks, with wind-sculpted beech and gorse hedgerows on higher ground.
• Herringbone patterns of slates common in walls and hedgebanks. Morte slates and quartz boulders are distinctive vernacular features in the buildings and walls around Lee.
• Range of types and patterns of woodland within the combes, including ancient oak woodland, plantation, occasional exotic/specimen trees and more open woodland interspersed with grassland or heath.
• Extensive semi-natural habitats, including cliffs, coastal grassland and heath, inter-tidal mudflats (Watermouth Bay) and species-rich rocky foreshore, much of which is inaccessible.
• Mosaics of maritime grassland, heath, shrubby woodland and scrub along the cliff tops and sloping faces support breeding colonies of seabirds.
• Farmland habitats, including hedgerows and hedgebanks, field margins and unimproved or semi-improved grasslands.
• Numerous prehistoric sites, including standing stones and coastal hillforts, such as the nationally important example at Hillsborough.
• Working harbours and traditional maritime activities are still very much part of today's working landscape. The remains of the formerly important lead and silver mining industry feature around Combe Martin.
• The Tunnels Beaches at Ilfracombe, created as tidal bathing pools in the Victorian era, remain popular for bathing and beach activities.
• Linear settlements nestled in sheltered combes, some with working harbours. Elsewhere, scattered farmsteads are found on valley sides.
• Local vernacular characterised by a variety of styles using cob, Morte slate, thatch, whitewash and stone.
• Victorian seaside architecture in Ilfracombe; Arts and Crafts style houses at Lee; and mining and industrial buildings at Combe Martin.
• Narrow lanes with high, fern-lined banks frame views of the sea when descending into the combes, with sunken lanes around Combe Martin.
• A popular tourist destination, with caravan parks and car parks forming prominent features in the open and often exposed landscape.
• The higher land of Exmoor forms a backdrop to views in the eastern part of the area.
• Long, uninterrupted views across the Bristol Channel from the coastal edge, with Lundy Island forming a focal point on otherwise open skylines.

Wooded slopes of Hillsborough nature reserve and hillfort.

Special qualities and features

Exceptionally high scenic quality, largely within the North Devon Coast AONB and Heritage Coast; the eastern part of the area also forms the setting to Exmoor National Park.

Geological Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), including the only formations of aragonite crystals in the UK at Napps Cave, and Devonian stratigraphy, palaeontology and palaeogeography at Hele, Samson's and Combe Martin Bays.

Regionally Important Geological Sites covering geological exposures at Tunnel Beach, Blythes Cove and Rapparee Cove.

Nationally important habitats at Morte Point SSSI, with coastal heath and grassland habitats supporting nesting seabirds including fulmar, cormorant and shag. Extensive coverage of County Wildlife Sites, including ancient woodland in combes, coastal heathland, unimproved grasslands and wetland areas.

The coastline adjoins the Bideford to Foreland Point Marine Conservation Zone (MCZ), valued for its range of intertidal habitats and for providing connectivity between North Devon and Cornwall MCZ sites.

Scheduled Monuments at Hillsborough promontory hillfort (which is also a Local Nature Reserve and valued recreational asset) and prehistoric standing stones near Lee.

Conservation Areas covering the village cores of Berrynarbor and Lee, and Ilfracombe town centre; and numerous listed buildings, including churches, Watermouth Castle (Grade II*), early farmhouses, agricultural and industrial buildings (including limekilns, silver mines and other mineral workings).

The historic harbour and ancient quay at Ilfracombe with its long associations with fishing, ship-building and cross-channel trade. The Grade I listed St Nicholas' Chapel contains one of the UK's oldest working lighthouses.

Stone church towers at Combe Martin and Berrynarbor form local landmark features.

Numerous wreck sites lie just off the treacherous coastline which are often clustered around headlands and offshore rocks. These include the London which was wrecked off Rapparee Cove in 1796.

Extensive areas of National Trust owned and managed land in the western part of the area (e.g. the Morthoe, Lee and Torrs Park estates).

Good network of public rights of way, including the South West Coast Path which runs along the cliff tops.

High levels of tranquillity, especially in the western part of the area.

Forces for change and their landscape implications

Past and current

• Post-war intensification of farming leading to field enlargement (loss of hedgerows and hedgebanks) and a spread of intensive farmland backing the cliffs, fragmenting areas of coastal heath and maritime grassland. Some pastoral land has been converted to arable use.
• Farm diversification schemes (e.g. quad biking, equine business, campsites) adding new elements into the landscape.
• Amalgamation of farms into larger holdings, changing the traditional appearance of the landscape (e.g. through the construction of large agricultural buildings).
• Cumulative impacts of ash dieback (Hymenoscyphus fraxineus) on the network of hedges, hedgerow trees, small copses and woodland and the resulting change in tree/woodland composition and landscape character.
• Some traditional hedge boundaries replaced/augmented by post and wire fencing where livestock is kept (e.g. south of Berrynarbor).
• Encroachment of bracken, gorse and young secondary woodland onto remaining areas of open coastal habitats as a result of a long-term decline in grazing and traditional management such as swaling (controlled burning of moorland).
• Change in woodland / tree species composition impacting on the characteristic coastal woodlands at Lee, as new pests/diseases spread (e.g. Phytopthora pathogens) and species intolerant of water level extremes die back.
• Increasing levels of coastal erosion and storm damage as a result of climate change/sea level rise impacting on some sections of the South West Coast Path, e.g. at Rockham Bay.
• Past planting of conifers in combes (particularly in the Sterridge and Borough valleys), with some new, replanted woodland on slopes above Combe Martin.
• New tree planting as a result of new government targets and to mitigate flooding and water quality issues, for example in the Umber Valley near Combe Martin.
• Tourism-related development of the coastline east of Ilfracombe, including harbours, villages, the coast road, golf course and numerous car parks and caravan sites.
• Erosion and recreation pressure around coastal resorts, and on popular paths and routes including the South West Coast Path.
• Linear housing extending along roads around Berrynarbor has altered the undeveloped character in places.
• Conversion of traditional and modern agricultural buildings to residential properties as a result of high demand for housing/accommodation within the AONB. This is particularly notable around Lee, Ilfracombe and Berrynarbor.
• Introduction of new modern building styles, especially around Lee, resulting in change to the traditional vernacular and landscape character.
• Increased levels of traffic (particularly in summer) affecting the tranquil character of the narrow rural lanes. Visually intrusive road signs are also bringing incremental change to the rural character of the lanes.
• Light spill from Ilfracombe and other settlements outside the area resulting in the loss of dark night skies.
• Telecommunications masts on prominent hill summits, detracting from the smooth, open skylines of the downland ridges.
• Turbines at Fullabrook Down Wind Farm and Mullacott Cross (in adjacent DCA 44) forming prominent moving structures above the smooth open hill summits.

Traditional hedge boundaries have been lost or replaced with fencing in some places, particularly on higher ground.

Future

• Forthcoming changes to agricultural subsidies, (including the new Environmental Land Management scheme which will pay landowners for the delivery of public goods and services, including for the restoration of nature) potentially affecting the management of characteristic landscape features such as coastal heaths, species-rich grasslands, hedgerows and woodlands.
• Continued demand for residential development (particularly around Ilfracombe and Combe Martin) affecting the traditional form and character of settlements.
• Ongoing tourism-related development (including expansion of holiday camps and increased numbers of permanent buildings in sites) resulting in further incremental change to landscape character.
• Potential effects of the future expansion of Ilfracombe Harbour on the setting of Hillsborough Hillfort.
• The future designation of the England Coast Path.
• Changes in seasonal weather patterns and the introduction of new species, pests and diseases resulting from climate change, potentially affecting semi-natural habitats such as woodland (including hedgerow trees and other trees outside of woodlands) and heaths, as well as agricultural practices.
• Higher sea level and storm frequency leading to increased coastal erosion. The Shoreline Management Plan recommends 'no active intervention' (although sea defences at Lee, Ilfracombe, Watermouth and Combe Martin will be retained), potentially causing 'coastal squeeze' between the eroding shoreline and agricultural land behind.
• Impacts of climate change on characteristic heathland and maritime grassland habitats, with potential for increased growth rates accelerating the spread of scrub and trees into the open coastal landscape, along with an increased prevalence of pests and diseases.
• Increase in renewable energy sources, including biomass crops, solar arrays, offshore and onshore wind farms and tidal and wave energy which could have a cumulative landscape impact.
• Impact of tree-planting schemes in response to government targets and funding opportunities such as the England Tree Action Plan and England Woodland Creation Offer.

Beach-side cafe and car parking at Hele Bay. Tourist facilities are a common feature along this stretch of coastline.

Landscape guidelines

Protect

• Protect the high scenic quality of the area within (or as a setting to) the North Devon Coast AONB.
• Protect the area's function as part of the setting to Exmoor National Park.
• Protect the area's distinctive and dramatic seascapes that contribute to the coastal character and sense of place.
• Protect open skylines from inappropriate development including telecommunications masts and large-scale wind turbines.
• Protect the contained form of settlement within the combes, resisting further spread or coalescence.
• Protect the landscape's traditional building styles and materials, particularly cob, Morte slate, thatch, whitewash and stone.
• Protect the landscape's network of winding rural lanes, resisting unsympathetic highways improvements (e.g. hedgerow/woodland cutting) or signage. Promote sustainable transport options to reduce traffic levels during busy holiday periods.
• Protect ancient oak woodlands in coastal combes. Control access by livestock, promoting natural regeneration to enhance longevity whilst using extensive grazing to promote the diversity of woodland ground flora.
• Protect historic features and landmarks such as church towers and strip field patterns, to ensure they remain integral parts of the landscape.
• Protect traditionally farmed areas and resist further agricultural intensification which has resulted in field enlargement and conversion of some areas to intensive arable farming.

Manage

• Manage farm diversification so that it is sensitive to the landscape and avoid the introduction of prominent and uncharacteristic features (e.g. industrial-scale modern farm buildings).
• Manage, sustain and support agricultural use, increasing the biodiversity of farmland, providing incentives for farmers to graze 'marginal' land such as unimproved grassland and coastal heath as an integral part of their farming systems (including through the new Environmental Land Management schemes and other initiatives).
• Manage hedgerows and replace lost or over mature hedgerow trees and wind-sculpted tree belts; restore lost field patterns where possible.
• Manage and re-link woodlands, encouraging the use of traditional techniques such as coppicing, and retaining the diversity of woodland types within the area.
• Manage and re-link semi-natural coastal habitats to maximise their biodiversity and strengthen their resistance to coastal squeeze and climate change. Restore and develop areas of coastal heath and create buffer zones between cliff communities and improved agricultural land where possible.
• Manage archaeological sites, controlling visitor pressure and providing sensitive interpretation where appropriate.
• Manage recreational use of the area to ensure a sustainable balance between recreation and conservation interests.

Plan

• Plan for changes to agriculture as a result of market pressures (including Brexit and increased demand for domestic food production) and new agricultural funding support schemes. New crops may also become viable as a result of climate change and the potential landscape impacts of these should be considered.
• Plan for future effects of climate change along the coast, allowing natural processes to take place as much as possible, whilst ensuring local people are involved in decision-making relating to future landscapes.
• Encourage a diverse mix of habitats and nature recovery networks, including plantations, broadleaved woodland and grassland.
• Create, extend and link woodland and wetland habitats to enhance the water storage capacity of the landscape (reducing downstream flooding) and improve water quality by reducing soil erosion and agricultural run-off.
• Encourage natural flood management interventions to reduce the risk of downstream flooding.
• Enhance areas of coniferous plantation, encouraging a move towards mixed stocking and the restoration of open habitats (as well as maintaining areas of sustainable timber production and exploring opportunities for enhancing access/recreational use).
• Encourage natural regeneration of woodland, ensuring that any new planting is in line with the Devon Local Nature Partnership Right Place, Right Tree guidance to retain and enhance the distinctive characteristics of the landscape. Aim to connect fragmented sites, including within combes and on steep coastal slopes.
• Restore lost or degraded lengths of hedgerow to strengthen ecological connectivity and natural flood management whilst respecting the characteristic local field patterns. Follow guidelines published by Devon Hedge Group.
• Ensure future settlement expansion is sensitively designed and sited, to avoid detrimental impacts to landscape character. Seek to mitigate the impacts of development through sensitive planting and lighting schemes.
• Reduce light pollution from roads and settlements, exploring options for reduced lighting including at road junctions.
• Any new development or extensions should utilise the same materials and building styles wherever possible (whilst seeking to incorporate sustainable and low carbon building construction and design).
• Develop a landscape that is resilient to increasing levels of recreational use and tourism. Ensure that the siting and design of new tourism-related development and infrastructure respects the local built character and is sympathetic to the landscape.
• Explore and increase provision of sustainable travel options (including public transport and active travel networks) to reduce road traffic during busy holiday periods.
• Create green infrastructure links to and from coastal resorts and the South West Coast Path to facilitate recreation, reduce car usage and enhance the natural settings of settlements.
• Ensure plans for renewable energy and telecoms infrastructure (including masts and onshore and offshore renewable energy installations) consider landscape and visual effects, including cumulative effects, and their impacts mitigated through careful siting and design.

DCA 45 North Devon High Coast (PDF) [1MB]

Views from west of George Nympton across arable fields and pasture over South Molton to Exmoor on the horizon.

Contextual description

This Devon Character Areas (DCA) is a relatively small area, comprising land around the small market town of South Molton, plus the valley of the River Yeo extending eastwards. To the north is a gradual transition to the ridges and wooded valleys of the Exmoor Fringe DCA. To the south is a gradual transition to the lower land of the Taw Valley DCA, with Witheridge and Rackenford Moor DCA beyond to the east. To the west is the Codden Hill and Wooded Estates DCA, the transition being marked by the edge of the Castle Hill estate. All of the landscape falls within North Devon District.

Link to National Character Areas and Constituent Landscape Character Types

Constituent Landscape Character Types (LCTs) include 1F Farmed Lowland Moorland and Culm Grassland, 3A Upper Farmed and Wooded Valley Slopes, 3C Sparsely Settled Farmed Valley Floors and 3H Secluded Valleys.

This DCA falls within The Culm National Character Area (NCA 149) and Exmoor National Character Area (NCA 145).

Summary character description

Bright green fields divided by thick dark green hedgerows create a strong patchwork pattern across this peaceful and highly rural landscape. Steep, narrow, ancient lanes and tracks wind across the hills between flower-rich banks and lush hedgerows. South Molton is a thriving market town with a wealth of colourful medieval, Elizabethan and Georgian buildings laid out around its busy main square. The square towers of the churches of South Molton, George Nympton and Bishop's Nympton can be seen in glimpsed views glimpsed between the hills and form important local landmarks.

View over South Molton with its prominent church tower (from elevated land within the Taw Valley DCA to the south).

Distinctive characteristics

• Underlying Carboniferous Culm Measures geology (mudstones and siltstones with bands of sandstone).
• Strongly undulating landform of rolling hills cut by spring-fed tributary streams of the River Taw, including the Yeo and Mole.
• Small traditional orchards often associated with farmhouses.
• Pastoral landscape - mainly sheep - on medium-quality soils. Occasional fields of arable to the west on better quality land, some cultivated using traditional harvesting methods.
• Fields generally fairly regular in shape, with pockets of smaller, irregular enclosures of medieval origin. Fields and lanes bounded by thick species-rich hedgerows with flower-rich banks; occasional managed hedgerows near settlements allow more extensive views.
• Linear woodland in river valleys and along streams, scattered copses throughout, and conifer plantations to the east of South Molton.
• Semi-natural habitats including pockets of Culm grassland, woodland and damp grassland.
• Prehistoric hillforts occupying prominent locations in the landscape; other historic features (including bridges, tracks and former mills) in the Yeo Valley remaining in everyday use, lending a strong time-depth to the area.
• Landscape centred around the market town of South Molton, with the smaller historic villages of Bishop's Nympton and George Nympton marked by landmark church towers.
• Scattered farms typically displaying the local vernacular of whitewash or white/cream render with painted woodwork and slate roofs.
• Electricity pylons extending east to west are prominent in views across the landscape. The nine large turbines at Batsworthy Cross are significant in views to the east, and domestic wind turbines (often associated with farms) are common throughout.
• Narrow, winding rural lanes with numerous stone bridges and white fingerpost signs, enclosed by high, flower- and fern-rich Devon hedgebanks.
• A peaceful and highly rural landscape, with sudden and unexpected long views afforded through gaps in high hedgebanks. The A361 North Devon Link Road crosses the north of the area, eroding local levels of tranquillity.
• Overall strong sense of tranquillity and history with a general absence of modern development away from South Molton.

Traditional harvesting of wheat field near George Nympton using a reaper binder, with sheaves stood up into stooks to dry.

Narrow rural lane bounded by high hedges. George Nympton, with its characteristic square stone church tower, visible in channeled views down a typical sunken lane.

Special qualities and features

High scenic quality; a quintessentially rich Devon landscape of fields and hedgerows.

Visible in views to and from Exmoor National Park, contributing to the setting of the nationally designated landscape.

Locally high levels of tranquillity, although South Molton and the A361 reduce perceptions of tranquillity in the northern part of the area.

Pockets of ancient semi-natural woodland on valley sides, plus larger areas of replanted ancient woodland and a number of County Wildlife Sites (particularly along the Yeo Valley) designated for their wetland, Culm grassland and woodland habitats.

Conservation Areas at Bishop's Nympton and the historic core of South Molton, which contains well-preserved medieval, Elizabethan and Georgian buildings.

Many historic listed buildings, including farmhouses, outbuildings, mills, chapels and churches (the latter often Grade I listed), scattered across the area and with clusters around South Molton (including the town's Grade I listed Guildhall), Bishop's Nympton and George Nympton.

Prehistoric hillforts at Whitechapel Moors and north-west of Woodhouse are designated Scheduled Monuments.

A network of historic lanes and tracks (plus some public rights of way) enable access into the landscape.

Two Moors Way recreational route (linking Dartmoor and Exmoor) crosses north-south through the east of the area.

Disused part of the Devon and Somerset Railway line along the Yeo Valley, serving as a reminder of the area's industrial past.

Forces for change and their landscape implications

Past and current

• Agricultural intensification and farm amalgamation changing the character of the rural landscape (e.g. by conversion of pastoral land to arable use, and construction of large-scale agricultural buildings).
• Hedgerow removal on more elevated land in the drive for agricultural intensification, along with the widening of gateways to fit larger farm machinery.
• Past establishment of coniferous plantations (e.g. Whitehill Plantation, South Hayne Plantation, Blasridge Plantation) introducing strong geometric elements into the landscape.
• Construction of large-scale industrial buildings around South Molton, such as the Norbord factory and the industrial estate adjacent to the A361, which are visible from the surrounding landscape.
• Residential development on the outskirts of South Molton and smaller-scale development adjoining villages (e.g. Bishop's Nympton).
• The A361 North Devon Link Road cutting across the landscape, with its associated structures such as roundabouts and bridges.
• Light spill and associated reduction in tranquillity from South Molton and the A361.
• Introduction of man-made structures into the landscape, including electricity pylons, telecommunications masts and renewable energy schemes, including solar farms (e.g. Kingsland Barton, a 12ha solar farm west of South Molton), Batsworthy Cross wind farm (9 turbines over 100m in height) and a number of farm-based wind turbines.
• Diffuse pollution from agriculture affecting the water quality of the Taw catchment.
• Invasive water-borne weeds (e.g. Himalayan Balsam and Japanese Knotweed) affecting native riparian vegetation and habitats.
• Effects of climate change resulting in wetter and warmer winters, and more frequent hot and dry periods (increasing the risk of drought in summer), plus more frequent extreme weather events such as storms with more intense rainfall causing flooding particularly on lower ground.

Future

• Forthcoming changes to agricultural subsidies, including the new Environmental Land Management scheme (ELMs) which will pay landowners for the delivery of public goods and services, including for the restoration of nature. This may lead to alterations in livestock numbers and increased farm diversification, and impact management of characteristic landscape features such as hedgerows and linhays.
• Gradual erosion of landscape character as a result of incremental change (e.g. introduction of intrusive road signs); insensitive highways works on rural lanes; and abandonment of traditional farm buildings.
• Development pressure, including the continued expansion of South Molton and surrounding industrial estates, changing the character of the town and impacting visually on the surrounding landscape.
• Residential development on the outskirts of historic villages, diluting their historic character and nucleated form.
• The wider area's importance for tourism and recreation leading to continued/accelerated demand for facilities such as camping, glamping and caravan sites, holiday accommodation (including farm conversions) and visitor attractions.
• Continued demand for renewable energy schemes, particularly wind turbines on elevated land; and new bio-energy crops and solar arrays altering the pattern and appearance of the landscape, with potential cumulative impacts.
• Climate change, potentially affecting seasonal weather patterns and growing cycles and bringing new pests and diseases, affecting traditional agricultural practices and semi-natural habitats such as Culm grassland.
• Individual hedgerow trees may become increasingly susceptible to damage from the increasing frequency and magnitude of storm events as a result of climate change.
• Increased flood risk and summer drought impacting on watercourses and associated wetland habitats due to climate change causing changes in weather patterns and more frequent extreme weather events. This could also lead to demand for engineered flood defenses.

View east from the outskirts of Bishop's Nympton across pastoral farmlands to Batsworthy Cross wind farm, the turbines forming prominent moving features on the skyline.

Kingsland Barton solar farm and the Norbord factory (with smoke plume) forming large-scale developments in the landscape near South Molton (as viewed from elevated land in the Taw Valley DCA).

Abandoned linhay near Grilstone, east of South Molton.

Landscape guidelines

Protect

• Protect the setting of Exmoor National Park, avoiding the introduction of prominent features that could impact on the expansive and unspoilt views from the southern edge of the designated landscape.
• Protect the historic character of the landscape, aiming to integrate modern large-scale features such as roads and barns through well-designed screen planting.
• Retain areas with remnant historic field patterns including those of medieval origin.
• Protect and manage surviving traditional orchards, including through grazing.
• Protect rural lanes and tracks and their associated hedgebanks, resisting unnecessary signage, lighting and other insensitive highways measures.
• Protect historic features such as white fingerposts, bridges, farmhouses and agricultural buildings - including traditional linhays.
• Protect the historic character and varied vernacular styles of South Molton town centre - a Conservation Area.
• Protect the overall rural character of the landscape, supporting traditional farming methods and new uses of redundant agricultural buildings. Avoid further agricultural intensification.

Manage

• Manage farmland, keeping features such as hedgerows and hedgebanks in good, intact condition.
• Encourage continuous cover management of plantations to maximise their biodiversity value and encourage sustainable timber production.
• Manage remnant areas of semi-natural habitats such as Culm grassland and wetlands though appropriate levels of grazing, and encourage farmers to manage areas of 'marginal' land within their wider farming regime.
• Manage archaeological sites including prehistoric hillforts, through clearance and low-level grazing if necessary, enabling visitor access and interpretation where appropriate.
• Reduce agricultural run-off into river catchments, through measures such as enhanced hedgerow planting, buffer strips and tree planting, to minimise impacts on water quality.
• Manage, and where possible eradicate invasive water-borne plant species.

Plan

• Identify opportunities for enhancing agriculture as a result of market changes (including Brexit and increased demand for domestic food production) and the new Environmental Land Management scheme. New crops may become viable as a result of climate change and the potential landscape impacts of these should be considered.
• Plan to extend and re-link remnant areas of semi-natural habitats (e.g. Culm grasslands, meadows and woodland) to enhance wildlife corridors, increase resilience to climate change and contribute to local nature recovery networks.
• Develop long-term restructuring of the more prominent conifer plantations to mixed productive woodland and open habitats, including re-creation of Culm grasslands and heathland as part of local nature recovery networks. Incorporate opportunities for access and recreation, wherever possible.
• Undertake new tree planting following Devon Local Nature Partnership's 'Right Place, Right Tree' principles. Avoid locations where trees would adversely affect valued characteristics of the landscape including long views from higher ground, including to and from Exmoor National Park.
• Explore the feasibility of extending woodland along the stream and river valleys to make an important contribution to reducing flood risk and improving downstream water quality.
• Understand likely hydrological changes in watercourses resulting from climate change and the impact of these changes on flood risk. Natural flood defenses and making space for flooding should be enhanced where appropriate (e.g. low lying tributary valleys).
• Plan for increased levels of domestic tourism and the potential impacts on the landscape, including from new buildings, facilitates and infrastructure and issues such as litter and footpath erosion.
• Investigate the possibility of reopening the disused railway line along the Yeo Valley as a recreational route.
• Plan for future residential development needs, particularly around South Molton. Ensure that new development is well sited and integrated into the surrounding landscape and habitat networks, including green infrastructure links to facilitate sustainable recreation and travel and to contribute to biodiversity net gain.
• Explore long-term uses for abandoned agricultural buildings, assuring a future for these important historic landscape features. Any conversions to residential/holiday use should be undertaken sensitively.
• Ensure any new developments in the landscape (particularly large structures) are sensitivity designed and sited. Explore opportunities to screen existing incongruous features into the landscape using characteristic and climate resilient hedge or tree/woodland planting.

DCA 53 South Molton Farmland (PDF) [1MB]

The River Caen near Velator Quay, with grazing marsh and characteristic 'linhay' animal shelter.

Contextual description

This Devon Character Area (DCA) comprises the estuary of the Taw and Torridge Rivers, and a small margin of land on either side. Northam Burrows and the dune system at Braunton Burrows are also included in the area. This area is distinctive for its flat topography and the dominance of the sea and estuary. To the north are the North Devon Coastal Downs (DCA 43) and North Devon Downs (DCA 44), to the east (beyond Barnstaple) lies DCA 14 Codden Hill and Wooded Estates, and to the south the Taw Valley (DCA 59), High Culm Ridges (DCA 32), Torridge Valley (DCA 63) and the Bideford Bay Coast (DCA 3). The DCA is almost entirely within North Devon district, apart from a small area to the south of the Taw-Torridge estuary mouth. The western area of the DCA (around the estuary mouth) is within the North Devon Coast Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), and the north-west is defined as Heritage Coast. This DCA contains the core and buffer zones of the North Devon Biosphere Reserve, centered on Braunton Burrows.

Link to National Character Areas and Constituent Landscape Character Types

Constituent LCTs: 4A Estuaries, 4B Marine Levels and Coastal Plains, 4E Extensive Inter-Tidal Sands and 4F Dunes.

This DCA falls within the Exmoor National Character Area (NCA 145).

Summary character description

This is a flat, sky-dominated landscape with strong sensory characteristics. The habitats within the mosaic (dunes, beach, saltmarsh, mudflats and farmland) each have unique qualities of pattern, colour and texture which are juxtaposed in different combinations. The salty smell of mudflats and the sea are ever-present, as are the calls of birds. Within the dunes, there is a strong sense of enclosure, isolation and wilderness. This contrasts with the open views towards the surrounding settlements, and the time depth associated with the strip fields at Braunton. The estuary settlements have a strong maritime character, with historic quays and impressive bridges.

Locally distinctive traditional round linhay (animal shelter) on Braunton Marsh.

Distinctive characteristics

• Carboniferous Culm Measures south of the Taw; Devonian sandstones, limestones and mudstones to the north; underlying geology topped with tidal and alluvial clay, silt and sand.
• A landscape constantly changing with the tides, with active geomorphological processes including pebble spit and dune formation.
• Low-lying, open and flat topography, at or very close to sea level, surrounded by higher land to the north and south.
• Extensive areas of grazing marsh (e.g. Northam Burrows, on Braunton Marsh); some arable land on better quality soils; very limited tree and woodland cover.
• Diverse field boundaries, including brackish ditches, stone walls, thorn hedges and, on Braunton Great Field, earth banks marking individual landsherds or furlongs.
• Extensive areas of active sand dunes and maritime grasslands on both sides of the estuary, framing a rich diversity of estuarine habitats including saltmarsh, sand spits, lagoons and reclaimed farmland.
• High biodiversity interest, supporting major populations of migrating and overwintering wading birds, fish (including sea trout and salmon), and rare plants and flowers.
• Diverse archaeology, including a submerged forest at Westward Ho!, prehistoric and Roman organic features preserved in anaerobic mud, and important 20th century military sites (e.g. American practice sites for the Normandy Landings in World War II).
• Important historic and cultural landscapes, including Braunton Marsh (drained in the early 19th century and dotted with roadside dykes, sluices, mortared stone walls and small stone linhays) and a rare surviving example of traditional strip-field arable farming at Braunton Great Field.
• Strong maritime history linked to trade, evidenced through historic quays and impressive bridges.
• Few settlements except for the peripheral towns of Braunton, Northam, Westward Ho!, Barnstaple and Bideford, which have a visual influence on nearby parts of the estuary.
• Open estuarine views contrasting with the sense of remoteness, isolation and wilderness experienced within the dunes. Wind turbines on Fullabrook Down are prominent in some estuary views.
• Strong sensory characteristics: colour and texture of habitats; smell of mudflats and the sea; birdsong and calls and sunlight reflecting off water.
• 19th Century reclaimed land used for grazing alongside the Taw Estuary in particular (including Chivenor Marsh, Yelland Marsh, Horsey Island and Home Farm Marsh at Fremington). 

Special qualities and features

Exceptionally high scenic quality, with most coastal areas falling within the North Devon Coast Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB); the northern part of the area is also defined as Heritage Coast.

Strong sense of tranquillity at Braunton Burrows and Saunton Sands.

Sand dune system at Braunton Burrows designated nationally (Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and internationally (Special Area of Conservation) due to its complete active dune sequence.

Core of UNESCO North Devon Biosphere Reserve centred on Braunton Burrows, with the buffer zone extending eastwards and southwards up the Taw and Torridge estuaries, and north to Croyde Bay.

Coastline adjoins the Bideford to Foreland Point Marine Conservation Zone (MCZ), valued for its range of intertidal habitats and for providing connectivity between North Devon and Cornwall MCZ sites.

Extensive areas covering the river channels and their associated estuarine habitats including mudflats, saltmarsh, grazing marsh and sand spits are designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest. There is an RSPB Reserve at Isley Marsh.

A Regionally Important Geological Site designation covers tidal deposits found at The Skern, near Appledore.

The prehistoric stone row on Isley Marsh is a Scheduled Monument.

Numerous listed buildings, including scattered cattle shelters on Braunton Marsh, as well as the impressive historic bridges at Barnstaple and Bideford.

Conservation Areas covering the historic cores of adjoining settlements, including Northam, Appledore, Braunton, Barnstaple, Fremington, Instow and Bideford.

Strong maritime history associated with the textile trade - including the 24-arched Grade I listed Long Bridge in Bideford, the listed Barnstaple Long Bridge and historic quays dotted along the shore.

Cultural associations with the popular composer John Gay (1685-1732) who was born in Barnstaple, and the 19th-century author Charles Kingsley who wrote the novel Westward Ho! whilst living in Bideford.

Well-used recreation facilities, including Northam Burrows Country Park, golf courses (including North Devon Royal Golf Course, the oldest golf course in Britain), and wide beaches popular for surfing, bathing, and sand yachting.

Open access land and Registered Common Land at Northam Burrows.

The South West Coast Path and Tarka Trail recreational routes, providing further opportunities for people to access and experience the landscape.

View east from Velator Quay towards warehouses at Chivenor Airfield, with the church tower at Heanton Punchardon on the skyline. (LCT 4b).

Forces for change and their landscape implications

Past and current

• Poor agricultural management, leading to under-grazing or overgrazing of valuable habitats and consequent loss of biodiversity (including a loss of coastal heath to agricultural improvements or scrub encroachment).
• Diffuse pollution from agricultural land and sewage overflows having a detrimental impact on water quality and estuarine biodiversity.
• Draining of grazing pastures for intensive arable production and horticulture, leading to falling water levels on the Braunton Marsh, affecting the wildlife and hydrology of the adjacent Braunton Burrows.
• Reduction in numbers of strip-holders at Braunton Great Field, leading to a loss of characteristic landsherd/furlong boundaries.
• Some farmland on settlement edges used for horse grazing and subdivided by pony tape, introducing a suburban character to the landscape.
• Lack of management at the disused Chivenor airfield, resulting in a neglected character.
• Past and ongoing military training activities on Braunton Burrows, (including vehicle manoeuvres and live firing), leading to localised erosion and occasionally impacting upon the wild and tranquil qualities of the dune landscape.
• Past development of golf courses on sensitive dune environments.
• Visual impacts and light pollution from development at adjacent settlements, including Westward Ho!, Bideford and Barnstaple; skyline development at Westward Ho! and large buildings on Westward Ho! Seafront affecting the edge of the AONB.
• Estuary crossed in two locations by the A39 major road corridor, impacting on the landscape's levels of peace and tranquillity. Noise and air pollution also arises from the A361 running parallel to the northern estuary bank.
• Modern infrastructure, including major roads and a new retail park on the edge of Barnstaple, affecting the traditional character of the estuary setting and impacting on tranquillity.
• Construction of masts on downland summits at Saunton Down just to the north affecting the backdrop to views northwards across the estuary.
• 22 x 110m Wind Turbines at Fullabrook Down, forming prominent moving features on skylines in views north from the estuary.
• Damage to fragile dune system habitats from trampling and erosion as a result of recreational activities and land uses.
• Further growth in popularity of the area and the surrounding coast for both coast and water-based recreation and tourism, impacting on levels of tranquillity (and sense of wilderness at Braunton Burrows), leading to increased demand for facilities and infrastructure.
• Recreational pressure and demand for facilities along popular access routes (particularly the South West Coast Path and Tarka Trail) and 'honeypot' sites, such as Northam Burrows Country Park.
• Concerns regarding wildlife disturbance due to increased use of the estuary - including by jet skis, motorboats, and bait diggers. These issues are being addressed by a voluntary Code of Conduct developed and promoted by the North Devon Biosphere Reserve.
• Past sand extraction at Crow Point affecting its ability to protect the estuary mouth from coastal erosion.
• Effects of climate change resulting in wetter and warmer winters, and more frequent hot and dry periods (increasing the risk of drought in summer), plus more frequent extreme weather events and sea level rise leading to increased coastal flooding.

Visitor facilities on the South West Coast Path at Fremington Quay.

Future

• Uncertainty over post-Brexit agricultural support, potentially resulting in traditional farming methods such as strip fields and use of 'marginal' land such as grazing marsh and sand dunes becoming unviable. This may affect management of vegetation on Braunton Burrows.
• Sea level rise and coastal erosion as a result of climate change, potentially seeing a significant rise in the estuary's water levels and a consequential widening of its channels, with possible damage/loss of tidal/coastal habitats, agricultural land, coastal archaeology and flooding of settlements.
• Potential environmental impacts from a former landfill site at Northam Burrows.
• Loss of sand dunes, resulting from higher sea levels, and greater wave energy due to increased frequency and intensity of storms. Changes may also occur in the volumes of sand being deposited.
• Potential changes in water table affecting dune systems and artificially drained areas such as Braunton Marsh.
• Former areas of dry grazing land (including Horsey Island) threatened with inundation from rising sea levels.
• Changes in species composition as a result of extended growing seasons due to longer, warmer summers, and the introduction of new species, pests and diseases.
• Potential land loss at Northam Burrows due to Shoreline Management Plan proposal to retain sea defences for Westward Ho! and Northam, but to allow managed realignment of the pebble spit.
• Continued military use of Braunton Burrows, with live firing and vehicle movement intermittently impacting upon levels of tranquillity.
• Development pressures and new development proposals on brown- and green-field land fringing the estuary (e.g. the former Yelland power station site and Chivenor airfield), impacting on the estuary's naturalistic and tranquil qualities, levels of light pollution, and potentially its wildlife.
• Continued demand for tourist accommodation and recreational facilities, introducing new commercial and residential development (including conversion of farm buildings), changing the character of the area.
• Increased traffic congestion and development pressure in and around popular locations including Braunton, Northam Burrows and Barnstaple.
• Further demand for renewable energy developments, including tidal schemes, offshore and onshore wind, all potentially affecting the character of the area.

Car park, golf course and surf hire facilities at Northam Burrows Country Park, backed by development along the coastline at Westward Ho!

Landscape guidelines

Protect

• Protect the open character of the estuary and views from and to surrounding landscapes.
• Protect the open and undeveloped character of Braunton Great Field, ensuring that any new development in the area respects the scale and historic character of the landscape.
• Protect, and where appropriate restore historic features such as quays, bridges and agricultural structures (including those of Braunton Marsh and Braunton Great Field); provide sensitive interpretation where appropriate to increase the public's awareness of these features.
• Protect the area's distinctive seascapes and open views across Bideford Bay.
• Protect high levels of tranquillity, sense of wilderness and dark night skies, resisting development or land use changes which would adversely affect these characteristics.
• Protect sensitive skylines (e.g. Westward Ho!) from further ridgeline development.

Manage

• Manage the estuary's internationally important habitats including dunes, saltmarshes and mudflats, using traditional techniques including appropriate levels of grazing, in accordance with North Devon Biosphere Reserve guidelines.
• Manage the land within the North Devon Coast AONB in accordance with the AONB Management Plan.
• Manage agricultural land fringing the estuary using traditional farming and land management practices, encouraging farmers and commoners to use the pastures and marshes for appropriate levels of grazing as part of their farming systems.
• Manage Braunton Marsh through continued agricultural grazing. Explore opportunities to restore previously intensified agricultural land to grazing marsh, including through the new Environmental Land Management Schemes.
• Continue management of Horsey Island as transitional habitat from freshwater marsh to saltmarsh.
• Manage agricultural run-off from adjacent farmland to reduce contamination of the estuary and nature conservation sites.
• Manage and support continuation of arable and horticultural farming on Braunton Great Field within the original medieval strips.
• Manage hedgerows around Gallowell, Lower Thorn and Middle Thorn to reinforce the sense of a well-managed landscape.
• Manage the popularity of the landscape (land and water) for access and recreation, ensuring it is of an appropriate scale and does not detract from the tranquil qualities of the area. Ensure higher tourist footfall does not have a negative effect on features including the extensive fragile semi-natural habitats.

Plan

• Mitigate the impacts of climate change (particularly the effects of sea level rise and coastal erosion), by allowing natural process to take place where possible, whilst ensuring that local communities are involved in making decisions about their future landscape.
• Expand estuarine and wetland habitats as part of a nature recovery network approach to build resilience to the impacts of future climate change.
• Respond to the UK-wide policy drive for woodland planting in line with the Devon Local Nature Partnership Right Place, Right Tree guidance to ensure the distinctive characteristics of the landscape are retained and enhanced, including using new tree planting to help screen and soften visual impact of new built elements that detract from rural character.
• Ensure any future expansion of towns on the estuary fringes is sensitively incorporated and does not detract from the landscape setting of the estuary.
• Develop Green Infrastructure links from settlements to strategic routes such as the Tarka Trail and South West Coast Path.
• Ensure any new development - particularly within or adjacent to the AONB - is sensitive in terms of its design and scale and impacts on the naturalistic/tranquil qualities, light pollution and wildlife are minimised.
• Aim to reduce light pollution from Barnstaple, Bideford and other settlements and major roads. Explore the introduction of appropriate screening (e.g. tree, woodland, hedgerow planting) to reduce existing impacts on the landscape.
• Sensitively incorporate flood defences within the landscape, favouring 'soft engineering' solutions, including natural flood management techniques where appropriate.
• Plan for future need for energy and telecoms infrastructure including masts and renewable energy installations, so that these can be sited in appropriate locations and their impacts mitigated through careful design.
• Explore options for future redevelopment of Chivenor airfield, involving local people in decision making. Ensure that the new use of the site is harmonious with the surrounding landscape.

DCA 58 Taw Torridge Estuary (PDF) [1MB]

View across rolling farmland towards the densely wooded Taw Valley, including Burrowcleave Wood on the left.

Contextual description

This Devon Character Area (DCA) comprises the main valley of the River Taw, plus its tributary valleys, including the River Bray, River Mole, Crooked Oak Stream, and Mully Brook. The area forms a rough 'Y' shape, surrounded by areas of higher land. The South Molton Farmland DCA and Codden Hill and Wooded Estates DCA lie to the north, Witheridge and Rackenford Moor to the east and the High Culm Ridges to the west. To the south is the High Taw Farmland. The valley straddles North Devon and Torridge Districts, extending into Mid Devon to the south.

Link to National Character Areas and Constituent Landscape Character Types

Constituent Landscape Character Types (LCTs) include 1F Farmed Lowland Moorland and Culm Grassland, 3A Upper Farmed Wooded Valley Slopes, 3C Sparsely Settled Farmed Valley Floors, 3G River Valley Slopes and Combes, 3H Secluded Valleys and 5A Inland Elevated Undulating Land.

This DCA falls within The Culm National Character Area (NCA 149).

Summary character description

This is an intricate, complex and varied valley landscape, contrasting with the surrounding open, elevated farmland. Woodland cover and the sloping topography combine with bends and spurs in the valley to hide views and create constant surprises. Tightly wooded sections unexpectedly open out to display wide vistas across the valley. Around Eggesford, the steep valley sides and mixture of broadleaved and coniferous woodland are evocative of continental Europe. Elsewhere, tranquil parkland gives the valley a soothing atmosphere.

Extensive coniferous woodland within the main Taw Valley with a mix of pasture and arable on rural valley sides, viewed from the south of the DCA.

Distinctive characteristics

• Underlying Culm Measures geology of Carboniferous mudstones, siltstones and sandstone which have been incised by the rivers.
• Dramatic steep-sided valleys with flat valley floors cut through the surrounding landform.
• Fast-flowing, clear rivers meander through valleys. The lower course of the Taw near Barnstaple is tidal.
• Fields on valley floodplains and valley sides generally pastoral, with some arable land use on downstream, shallower valley slopes downstream, where there is higher-quality agricultural land.
• Fields are typically regular in shape, but with pockets of older enclosures which are smaller and irregular. The valley floor has a generally open character.
• Field boundaries comprise hedgerows or hedgebanks, with some fences, particularly in arable areas.
• Extensive areas of dense woodland on valley sides, with broadleaved and coniferous woodland merging quite naturally, and riparian and parkland trees adding to the pastoral character of valley bottoms.
• Semi-natural habitats associated with the river, including wetlands, water meadows and tidal salt marsh towards Barnstaple.
• Historic features including stone bridges, weirs and mills add to the time-depth of the valley landscape.
• Three medieval motte and bailey castles on the valley sides overlooking the river.
• Strong parkland influence with historic wood pasture, typically associated with estates including Tawstock Park and King's Nympton Park.
• Small orchards throughout the area adding to the diversity of tree cover, particularly in the main valley.
• Settlement generally clustered around railway stations (e.g. Umberleigh and Chapelton) or industrial sites (Colleton Mills), with villages higher up the valley sides or in tributary valleys.
• Historic farmsteads on valley sides overlooking the rivers, linked by steep, narrow, tunnel-like lanes bounded by high fern hedges.
• Transport routes, including the 'Tarka Line' railway between Exeter and Barnstaple, and the A377, erode levels of tranquillity within the valley.
• Long views north to the uplands of Exmoor and south to Dartmoor.
• A quiet, peaceful, visually attractive landscape, often with a strong sense of remoteness.

The River Taw passing under a stone bridge west of King's Nympton with dense deciduous woodland (Head Wood and Park Wood) on the valley sides.

Special qualities and features

High scenic quality and strong sense of enclosure, contrasting with the surrounding open farmland.

Eastern part of the area intervisible with Exmoor National Park, contributing to the setting of the nationally designated landscape; views also to Dartmoor National Park from elevated land.

Locally high levels of tranquillity, particularly in the tributary valleys to the east, and dark night skies away from main settlements within/adjacent to the DCA.

Geological Site of Special Scientific Interest at Park Gate Quarry, designated for its carboniferous fossil exposures.

Extensive areas of ancient woodland (both semi-natural and replanted) with County Wildlife Sites including valley-floor and woodland habitats.

King's Nympton Park (listed Grade II on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens) - an 18th century landscape developed from a 15th century deer park.

Eggesford Castle, Heywood Castle and Millsome Castle (all medieval motte and bailey castles) together with an early Iron Age hillfort (Brightley Barton Camp) and a medieval standing cross (Speke's Cross) - are all Scheduled Monuments.

Strong local vernacular of cream/whitewash thatched cottages; some exposed stone and slate roofs.

Many Conservation Areas including the historic village cores of High Burrington, Ashreigney, King's Nympton and Chulmleigh.

Wealth of historic buildings throughout the area, including houses, bridges and industrial features. Concentrations of listed buildings (some Grade I listed) in Atherington, Burrington, Chulmleigh and King's Nympton,

Cultural associations with Henry Williamson's Tarka the Otter.

The scenic Tarka Line local railway running between Barnstaple and Exeter provides access to the landscape via the villages of the Taw and Yeo Valleys.

Valued recreational assets, including accessible forests, particularly around Eggesford (popular for mountain biking) plus the Ridge and Valley Walk and Tarka Trail crossing through the east of the area.

Forces for change and their landscape implications

Past and current

• Coniferous plantations on former ancient woodland, changing the character of the landscape.
• Parkland planting reaching maturity and/ or poorly managed, potentially leading to the loss of this important element of the landscape.
• Water-borne invasive weeds such as Himalayan Balsam and Japanese Knotweed affecting river-bank habitats.
• Loss of orchards, reducing landscape diversity and wildlife value.
• Agricultural intensification, resulting in changes in grazing patterns, loss of pasture and rough grasslands on valley slopes to intensive arable production and loss of landscape features such as hedgerows.
• Removal of species-rich Devon banks to support agricultural intensification, with lengths of fencing replacing traditional boundaries in some locations.
• Increased levels of farm, recreational and other traffic on narrow rural roads, reducing the area's tranquility and damaging roadside banks and vegetation; unsympathetic highways measures.
• Main roads and railway line locally reduce levels of tranquillity, although traffic levels on the A377 have been reduced by preferential use of the more northerly A361 'North Devon Link Road'.
• Residential development near existing villages, hamlets and farmsteads, built largely in keeping with local vernacular styles and materials.
• Visual intrusion and light spill from urban development in and around Barnstaple, lying just outside the area in the Taw-Torridge Estuary DCA.
• Effects of climate change resulting in wetter and warmer winters, and more frequent hot and dry periods (increasing the risk of drought in summer), plus more frequent extreme weather events such as storms with more intense rainfall causing flooding in valleys.

Future

• Potential planting of new woodlands to reduce flooding and improve water storage and carbon sequestration.
• Loss of parkland trees and woodland as a result of poor management, as well as storm damage and drought due to climate change, and new pests, diseases and pathogens (e.g. Phytophthora).
• Forthcoming changes to agricultural subsidies, including the new Environmental Land Management scheme (ELMs) which will pay landowners for the delivery of public goods and services, including for the restoration of nature. This may lead changes in traditional grazing management and the management of landscape features such as Devon hedges and traditional linhays.
• Longer growing season and enhanced growth rates of vegetation as a result of climate change, including secondary woodland, resulting in a spread of such vegetation in the understories of the area's semi-natural and estate woodlands.
• Increased flood risk and drought due to climate change, impacting on the river, tributaries and associated wetland/meadow habitats. This could also lead to demand for engineered flood defenses.
• Increased levels of diffuse pollution from agriculture, reducing fish stocks and affecting riparian wildlife.
• Renewable energy schemes, including potential hydro-electric power schemes on rivers, solar farms and bio-energy crops which would change the pattern of the agricultural landscape, and wind turbines affecting the skylines on higher land.
• Pressure/demand for residential development around existing villages, hamlets and farmsteads, as well as farm conversions and new agricultural buildings on farms.
• Continued expansion of Barnstaple causing visual intrusion into the valley landscapes, and associated reductions in tranquillity and dark night skies.
• Incremental changes such as intrusive signage eroding the character of the landscape.
• Increase in UK-based tourism with associated requirements for new facilities and infrastructure, as well as an increase in traffic levels on the local road network (including characteristically quiet Devon green lanes).

A sensitively restored traditional agricultural building near Meethe.

Landscape guidelines

Protect

• Protect the lightly settled and tranquil character of the landscape, with dark night skies.
• Protect traditional building styles and materials, particularly cream/whitewashed thatched cottages, as well as exposed stone and slate.
• Protect and restore/ repair historic features within the landscape such as bridges, medieval motte and bailey castles and the Iron Age hillfort of Brightley Barton Camp (including through grazing at appropriate levels and recreation management).
• Protect the network of quiet sunken lanes enclosed by woodland and species-rich hedgebanks rural lanes, resisting unsympathetic signage and highways measures.
• Protect and manage remaining traditional orchards.
• Protect open skylines on adjacent high ground which form the backdrop to the valleys.
• Protect tidal habitats and the associated birds and other species which they support.

Manage

• Manage parkland estates, resisting conversion from pastoral to arable use. Manage wood pasture and grassland habitats extensively to prevent damage to tree root systems.
• Retain veteran/dying trees for their wildlife habitats, seeking to plant the next generation of parkland trees using locally prevalent, climate-resilient species.
• Manage areas of semi-natural woodland, including through traditional techniques such as coppicing and extensive grazing to maximise age and species diversity and a rich ground flora (also building resilience to climate change).
• Manage the area's existing plantations for sustainable timber production and wildlife interest, creating new green links to surrounding semi-natural habitats as part of local nature recovery networks.
• Manage wet woodland and floodplains through traditional grazing and land management regimes to enhance their wildlife value and roles in flood prevention.
• Manage species-rich Devon hedgebanks through the regular coppicing of hedgerow trees, planting new (climate-resilient) specimens and re-laying gappy sections, strengthening irregular medieval field patterns.
• Manage important areas of rough grassland on upper slopes through a continuation of livestock grazing at appropriate levels. Support farmers to continue to farm these 'marginal' areas as an integral part of their farming system, including through the future Environmental Land Management Schemes.
• Manage agricultural run-off into the rivers from adjacent areas to reduce water pollution and impacts on ecological networks.
• Manage and control/ eradicate where possible invasive water-borne weeds.

Plan

• Restore lengths of lost Devon hedges, respecting traditional bank styles and species composition, to contribute to landscape structure and provide important linkages between semi-natural habitats.
• Plan for future need for residential development, respecting the existing sparsely settled character and the traditional vernacular.
• Restore and manage areas of relict traditional orchards and explore opportunities for the creation of new ones, including community orchards.
• Create, extend and link woodland and wetland habitats to enhance the water storage capacity of the landscape (reducing incidences of downstream flooding) and improve water quality through reducing soil erosion and agricultural run-off.
• Respond to the national policy drive for woodland planting, following the principles set out in Devon Local Nature Partnership's Right Place, Right Tree guidance. Extending woodland along and up the valley sides could make an important contribution to local nature recovery networks, reducing flood risk and improving water quality.
• Encourage natural regeneration of woodland and undertake new planting (using climate-hardy species) to link fragmented sites.
• Plan for changes to agriculture as a result of market pressures (including Brexit and increased demand for domestic food production) and the new Environmental Land Management Schemes. New crops may also become viable as a result of climate change and the potential landscape impacts of these should be considered.
• Develop long-term restructuring of conifer plantations to a more mixed structure, while retaining their role in sustainable timber production. Re-create and restore open habitats as part of a varied mosaic, and explore opportunities to embed improved access and recreation where possible.
• Understand likely hydrological changes in watercourses resulting from climate change and the impact of these changes on flood risk. This could also lead to demand for flood defenses to protect existing structures. Natural flood management and allowing space for flooding should be enhanced where appropriate within the landscape (e.g. along the River Taw and tributary floodplains).
• Encourage opportunities for floodplain restoration/re-connection/enhancements in order to better manage flooding for downstream communities
• Ensure new facilities and infrastructure to meet increased tourism demand are sensitively sited and designed to conserve and enhance the distinctive characteristics, valued attributes and special qualities of the landscape that make it attractive to visitors.
• Enhance opportunities to access the valley floor on foot and by cycle, linking to the existing public rights of way network (including the Tarka Trail).
• Ensure plans for future renewable energy developments and telecommunications infrastructure consider landscape and visual effects (including cumulative effects) so that these can be sited in appropriate locations and their impacts mitigated through careful design. Guide development to the least sensitive parts of the landscape and utilise screening from topography and vegetation.
• Ensure new development, conversions or extensions utilise local vernacular materials and styles wherever possible (whilst seeking to incorporate sustainable design).
• In adjacent towns, ensure development is well-integrated into the landscape (including through sensitive planting and lighting schemes) to minimise negative impacts on this tranquil area, and ensure there is provision of a surrounding network of green spaces, wildlife habitats and recreational routes.

New woodland planting and parkland trees at King's Nympton Park, with distant views across the Taw Valley.

DCA 59 Taw Valley (PDF) [1MB]

The River Torridge with valley sides clothed in dense deciduous woodland, viewed from a stone bridge south of Great Torrington.

Contextual description

This Devon Character Area (DCA) comprises the River Torridge and its tributaries, which flow generally northwards to emerge at the Taw-Torridge Estuary in Bideford. The longer (south-eastern) branch of the valley lies between the High Culm Ridges and the West Torridge Upland Farmland DCAs, extending south as far as the High Taw Farmland DCA. The shorter western tributary valleys of the Yeo and Duntz lie between the Bideford Bay Coast, the Western Culm Plateau and the West Torridge Upland Moorland DCAs. All of the DCA is within Torridge District.

Link to National Character Areas and Constituent Landscape Character Types

Constituent Landscape Character Types (LCTs) include 3A Upper Farmed Wooded Valley Slopes, 3C Sparsely Settled Farmed Valley Floors, 3G River Valley Slopes and Combes, and 3H Secluded Valleys.

This DCA is within The Culm National Character Area (NCA 149).

Summary character description

The River Torridge flows in a series of looping meanders through varied landscapes on its route to the sea. It passes dramatic gorges with dark forested sides, flows through open pastoral valley floors with sides cloaked in ancient woodland, and transitions to the tidal mudflats fringing the Taw-Torridge Estuary (DCA 58), echoing to the call of seabirds. The river is home to otters, which dart about in its clear waters, and is overlooked by ancient defences and historic villages perched high above on the valley sides. This is an intricate, complex and varied landscape, with unexpected views suddenly revealed as the landform and vegetation open out.

Tributary of the River Torridge viewed from Great Torrington Common, with dense mixed woodland (Pencleave Wood) on the valley sides and pasture above.

Distinctive characteristics

• Underlying Culm geology of mudstones, sandstones and siltstones incised by the River Torridge and its tributaries.
• Steep valley sides enclosing the wide main valley floor, contrasting with narrower tributary valley floors.
• River Torridge is deep and fast flowing, with a convoluted course and tightly meandering channel. It is tidal as far as Landcross, with mudflats exposed at low tide.
• Alluvial soils on valley floor generally used for pastoral agriculture, with a mixture of pastoral and arable agriculture and horse grazing on higher land.
• Fields of varying shape and size, comprising a mixture of medieval, post-medieval and modern enclosures. Mainly enclosed by hedgerows or hedgebanks, but with some loss of field boundaries in arable areas.
• Valley sides cloaked in deciduous woodland, including tracts of ancient origin. Some areas are defined by conifer plantations, particularly in the middle and upper reaches of the main valley.
• Other semi-natural habitats include water meadows and riparian habitats on valley floors, tidal mudflats and salt marshes on estuary fringes, traditional orchards around villages and unimproved grassland commons around Great Torrington.
• Many historic features associated with the river, including weirs, mills, bridges, a disused canal and railway (including the Tarka Trail).
• Prominent archaeological sites, including Iron Age hillforts providing evidence of a long-settled character at Castle Hill, Berry Castle and Ten Oaks Woods.
• Estate parkland on the valley floor adds to the sense of time-depth, as do prominent village church towers.
• A strongly rural, sparsely settled landscape with scattered farms (white cob/stone with thatch or slate roofs) and villages on higher ground.
• Great Torrington occupies a commanding position overlooking a crossing point of the River Torridge.
• Major roads (e.g. A386 and A3124) and transport routes (e.g. former Okehampton-Bideford railway line) generally follow the main valley floor.
• Elsewhere, winding lanes cross watercourses on narrow stone bridges, enclosed by high hedgebanks and marked by white fingerposts.
• Strong contrasts between enclosed wooded valleys and higher open farmland on either side, offering commanding views (e.g. from Great Torrington and Little Torrington towards Dartmoor).
• The tributaries and valley sides of the Torridge convey strong rural qualities and a sense of timelessness.

View to a densely wooded upstream section of the River Torridge from the A396, looking over a newly sown arable field on the valley floor.

Informal recreation at Great Torrington Common, from which there are expansive views of the pastoral valley floor and wooded valley sides. The ridgetop village of Monkleigh (with prominent church) is visible on the skyline.

Special qualities and features

Several Regionally Important Geological Sites covering geological exposures within the Torridge Valley around Torrington, including Barley Grove, Rosemoor Quarry and Beam Quarry.

Hunshaw Wood Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) designated for relic ancient semi-natural oak woodland with diverse ground flora and Halsdon SSSI designated for river, floodplain meadows and ancient oak woodland habitats.

Numerous County Wildlife Sites and nature reserves covering both riparian and woodland habitats.

Traditional orchards, gardens and designed landscapes, including the Royal Horticultural Society gardens at Rosemoor and estate parklands on the valley floor.

Variety of Scheduled Monuments covering many phases of the area's history, including Iron Age defences at Berry Castle, Castle Hill and Ten Oaks Wood, medieval crosses, holy wells, and later industrial sites such as lime kilns.

Conservation Areas covering the historic cores of Dolton and Beaford where there are clusters of listed buildings. The historic villages of Little Torrington and Dowland also contain concentrations of listed buildings.

Site of the last great battle of the Civil War at Torrington (1646), after which Oliver Cromwell and his New Model Army occupied the town.

Important otter habitat and strong cultural associations with Henry Williamson's book Tarka the Otter, which was inspired by the river setting at Weare Gifford and later filmed on location.

Area valued for recreation, including the popular Tarka Trail, many public rights of way, Great Torrington Common and Jennetts Reservoir (valued for fishing).

High scenic quality associated with the valley system's dramatic landform and strong sense of place.

Sense of peace and seclusion, with pockets of high tranquillity, particularly in tributary valleys.

Dark night skies in the southern part of the area (beyond the influences of Bideford and Great Torrington).

Forces for change and their landscape implications

Past and current

• Water quality issues resulting from agricultural intensification (e.g. increased use of fertilisers and agricultural run-off).
• Changing farming practices, including increased mechanisation (leading to loss of traditionally managed grasslands, and the introduction of large, modern farm buildings).
• Hobby farming (e.g. horse keeping with associated unsympathetic fencing and infrastructure) on settlement edges.
• Lack of woodland management resulting in loss of species diversity and age structure.
• Past replanting of ancient broadleaved woodland with conifers, changing valley character.
• Invasive water-borne weeds such as Himalayan Balsam and Japanese knotweed affecting native riparian vegetation and wildlife habitats.
• Loss of traditional orchards, reducing landscape diversity, heritage connections and wildlife value.
• Electricity pylons along the Duntz Valley which are visually intrusive in this intimate landscape.
• Development on settlement fringes viewed from across or above the valley (e.g. Bideford and Great Torrington) and linear expansion on the edges of Weare Gifford.
• Loss of trees resulting from spread of ash dieback (Hymenoscyphus fraxineus) disease.
• The golf course at Great Torrington changing the character of the valley sides. The valley south of Bideford is dominated by Jennetts Reservoir.
• Visual and audible impacts of main roads affecting tranquillity.
• Increased farm, recreational and other traffic on narrow rural roads, reducing tranquility.
• Light spill from Bideford (and to a lesser extent Great Torrington) affecting dark night skies.
• Effects of climate change resulting in wetter and warmer winters, and more frequent hot and dry periods (increasing the risk of drought in summer), plus more frequent extreme weather events such as storms with more intense rainfall causing flooding in valleys.

Future

• Forthcoming changes to agricultural subsidies, including the new Environmental Land Management scheme (ELMs) which will pay landowners for the delivery of public goods and services, including for the restoration of nature. This may impact the viability of traditional grazing management and the management of landscape features such as Devon hedges and traditional linhays.
• Increased levels of diffuse pollution from agriculture, reducing fish stocks and affecting riparian wildlife.
• Potential planting of new woodlands to reduce flooding and improve water storage and carbon sequestration.
• Potential changes in sea level (resulting from climate change) including increased tidal reach, affecting river processes and habitats, particularly in tidal stretches near Bideford.
• Increased flood risk and drought impacting on the river, tributaries and associated wetland habitats due to changes in weather patterns and more frequent extreme weather events as a result of climate change. This could also lead to demand for engineered flood defences.
• More intense summer drought conditions as a result of climate change, leading to a drying out of wetland habitats including riparian woodlands and meadows.
• Increased levels of diffuse pollution from agriculture resulting in detrimental effects on water quality and riparian wildlife.
• Changes to woodland species composition as a result of climate change, affecting weather patterns and growing seasons, and allowing new pests, diseases and pathogens (e.g. Phytophthora) to spread.
• Pressure/demand for residential development around existing villages, hamlets and farmsteads, as well as farm conversions and new agricultural buildings on farms.
• Continued development of larger settlements visible from the valley floor (e.g. Bideford), affecting the valley's rural character and dark night skies.
• Increased levels of domestic tourism (exacerbated following the Covid-19 pandemic), leading to demand for new recreation and tourism facilities such as caravan parks and campsites.
• Potential for new renewable energy schemes, including small-scale hydro-electric power schemes, and wind turbines on adjacent higher ground potentially visible on the skyline from within the valleys.

View north-west along the A3124 north of Beaford. Large farm with new agricultural barns visible as well as a traditional thatched cottage.

View north-west across pony paddocks towards Beaford. Three wind turbines at Darracott Moor (in DCA 32) are visible on the skyline.

Landscape guidelines

Protect

• Protect the natural form and features of the river and the dynamic processes that form them (e.g. meanders, shingle banks and tidal mud flats).
• Protect the open character of the valley floor, with its framed vistas and views across the valley.
• Protect the landscape's prominent archaeological sites, including Iron Age hillforts. Manage these features though grazing at appropriate levels and recreation management.
• Protect, restore and manage other important historic features such as lime kilns, bridges, canal and railway features. Include sensitive interpretation where appropriate.
• Protect skylines above the valleys from intrusive development.
• Protect and manage remaining traditional orchards.
• Protect the local vernacular building styles (including white cob/stone with thatch or slate roofs).
• Protect the character of the Conservation Areas at Dolton and Beaford.
• Protect the network of rural winding lanes, enclosed by high hedgebanks. Avoid unsympathetic highways works, lighting and road upgrades.

Manage

• Manage areas of semi-natural habitat including water meadows and riparian habitats on valley floors and tidal mudflats and salt marshes on estuary fringes. Link and extend habitats where possible to increase biodiversity, contribute to nature recovery networks and provide suitable habitats for species including otters.
• Manage broadleaved woodlands on valley sides (including use of traditional techniques such as coppicing) and promote woodland planting which extends and strengthens the existing woodland and hedge network, in line with Devon Local Nature Partnership's Right Place, Right Tree guidance.
• Promote the natural regeneration of the landscape's ancient semi-natural woodlands.
• Manage and maintain hedgerows and hedgebanks to enhance their multiple functions and wildlife interest, through regular hedgerow tree coppicing (and planting of new climate-resilient specimens) and re-laying of gappy sections, strengthening irregular medieval field patterns.
• Manage parkland estates, resisting conversion from pastoral to arable use. Manage wood pasture and grassland habitats extensively to prevent damage to tree root systems.
• Retain veteran/dying trees for their wildlife habitats, seeking to plant the next generation of parkland trees using locally prevalent, climate-resilient species.
• Manage agricultural run-off into the rivers from adjacent areas to reduce contamination of the water and impacts on semi-natural habitats within the landscape and further downstream.
• Manage and eradicate invasive water-borne weeds such as Japanese Knotweed and Himalayan Balsam.
• Manage recreation and conservation in an integrated manner to avoid potential conflicts, such as wildlife disturbance.

Plan

• Identify opportunities for enhancing agriculture as a result of market changes (including Brexit and increased demand for domestic food production) and the new Environmental Land Management Schemes. New crops may also become viable as a result of climate change and the potential landscape impacts of these should be considered.
• Create, extend and link woodland and wetland habitats including riparian woodland on the valley bottoms to enhance the water storage capacity of the landscape (reducing incidences of downstream flooding) and improve water quality by reducing soil erosion and agricultural run-off.
• Develop long-term restructuring of conifer plantations to a more mixed structure, while retaining their role in sustainable timber production. Re-create and restore open habitats as part of a varied mosaic, and explore opportunities for access and recreation.
• Restore hedgerows where they have been lost, respecting traditional bank styles and species composition, to contribute to landscape structure and provide important linkages between semi-natural habitats.
• Restore traditional orchards and encourage the establishment of new orchards, including community schemes.
• Ensure new facilities and infrastructure to meet increased tourism demand are sensitively sited and designed to conserve and enhance the distinctive characteristics, valued attributes and special qualities of the landscape that make it attractive to visitors. Mitigate potential negative impacts of tourists such as increased levels of litter and footpath erosion, particularly along the Tarka Trail.
• Respond to the national policy drive for woodland planting, following the principles set out in Devon Local Nature Partnership's Right Place, Right Tree guidance. Extending woodland along and up the valley sides could make an important contribution to local nature recovery networks, reducing flood risk and improving water quality.
• Avoid woodland creation on areas characterised by existing semi-natural habitat land cover, buried archaeology and open areas with long views. Also consider the impact of woodland creation on the setting of historic features within the landscape.
• Understand likely hydrological changes in watercourses resulting from climate change and the impact of these changes on flood risk. This could also lead to demand for flood defences to protect existing structures. Natural flood management and allowing space for flooding should be utilised where appropriate (e.g. along the River Torridge and tributary floodplains).
• Explore methods to reduce light spill from Bideford and Great Torrington to enhance the quality of dark night skies.
• Plan for future residential development demand, respecting the existing sparsely settled character and the traditional vernacular. In adjacent towns (e.g. Great Torrington), ensure development is well-integrated into the landscape to minimise visual impact on this area.
• Ensure that any new residential development, (including conversions and extensions) are sympathetic in form and style, replicating traditional vernacular where possible, whilst incorporating sustainable design and green infrastructure links.
• Ensure plans for new renewable energy developments consider landscape and visual effects (including cumulative effects) especially on south facing slopes and areas of high ground which are favorable for solar and wind development. Site in appropriate locations and mitigate impacts through careful design.

DCA 63 Torridge Valley (PDF) [1MB]

Pastoral farmland sloping towards the wooded valley of the River Carey, with distant views of Bodmin Moor.

Contextual description

This roughly V-shaped Devon Character Area (DCA) comprises the upper valleys of the rivers Tamar and Thrushel and their tributaries - the Carey, Deer, Lyd, Lew and Wolf, extending from just east of Launceston in Cornwall, northwards to Holsworthy and eastwards towards Okehampton. The western boundary of the area corresponds to the county boundary with Cornwall. To the north there are gradual transitions to the Western Culm Plateau and the High Torridge Culm Plateau DCAs. To the east is the Broadbury Ridges DCA and to the south the Middle Tamar Valley, Tamar Upland Fringe and Tavistock Dartmoor Fringes DCAs. The boundaries with the latter two areas are marked by the transition to higher ground with a stronger moorland influence. The valley landscape spans Torridge District (north) and West Devon District (south and east).

Link to National Character Areas and Constituent Landscape Character Types

Constituent Landscape Character Types (LCTs) include 1F Farmed Lowland Moorland and Culm Grassland, 2D Moorland Edge Slopes (within West Devon Borough), 3C Sparsely Settled Farmed Valley Floors, 3B Lower rolling farmed and settled valley slopes (Ibid), 3D Upland River Valleys (Ibid), 3H Secluded Valleys, 3F Settled valley floors (Ibid), 3G River Valley Slopes and Combes and 5A Inland Elevated Undulating Land.

This DCA falls within The Culm National Character Area (NCA 149).

Summary character description

A gentle, agricultural landscape of high scenic quality characterised by ribbon-like rivers. Slow-flowing, meandering streams fringed by trees glide through quiet, inaccessible floodplains. A semi-regular pattern of fields, edged with hedges and earth banks, covers the undulating landform and adds pattern and texture to the landscape. The area feels remote and peaceful, and away from Okehampton has seen very little modern development; the scattered stone-built farms and villages have a timeless quality. Narrow, earth-banked lanes thread across the valleys, contrasting with the A30 trunk road which cuts across the landscape.

Lee Wood conifer plantation marking a tributary valley and viewed from the south across pastural farmland containing many mature trees.

Distinctive characteristics

• Underlying geology of Carboniferous Culm rocks comprising mudstone, siltstone and sandstone.
• Gently undulating topography, with occasional steeper-sided river valleys.
• Larger rivers meandering through narrow floodplains, fed by smaller, steeper tributary streams.
• Occasional plantations and woodland blocks, particularly on south-facing valley sides.
• Lines of riparian trees following the meandering courses of the rivers and contrasting with the straighter lines of field boundaries.
• Parkland estates and few small, scattered traditional orchards (e.g. south of Lifton) give parts of the area a more wooded character.
• Brown loam soils supporting mainly pasture (particularly in the south), but with some arable on flatter, better-drained land.
• Variable field pattern, with unenclosed floodplains, small-medium sized irregular fields in the narrower valleys and larger, more regular fields (reflecting later enclosure) on higher ground.
• Fields separated by hedgerows and locally distinctive, tall earth banks which are sometimes stone-faced. Some curvilinear medieval strip fields survive, including around Cookworthy shrunken village.
• Watermeadows and wet pasture alongside rivers, and very occasional patches of rough ground known locally as 'moors'.
• Natural and artificial lakes (including the border with Roadford Lake Reservoir which lies just outside the DCA) and associated semi-natural habitats.
• Prehistoric features including barrow cemeteries along straight ridge-top roads, hilltop enclosures at Hele and east of Lifton, and coaxial fields at Meldon.
• Numerous archaeological sites at Sourton, including a Civil War redoubt, battlefield and remnants of a Roman road.
• Built heritage associated with rivers (e.g. bridges, mills and weirs). Stone bridges across the Tamar mark the county boundary.
• Remnants of industrial activities, including stone extraction and mining visible in the landscape.
• Sparse settlement consisting of scattered farmsteads and occasional clustered villages often at crossroads. Dwellings are built of local stone with warm grey and red tones, with slate or thatched roofs.
• Stone or cob linhays (animal shelters) are locally distinctive features of the agricultural landscape.
• Communication routes traditionally traverse the gentle topography, including the A30, stretches of the old main road to Cornwall, and disused railway lines following the Carey and Lyd valleys.
• Away from the A30 is a network of quiet, winding lanes often enclosed by high hedgebanks, with junctions marked by white fingerposts. Valley bottoms are less accessible.
• A quiet, uncluttered landscape, with open, expansive views from higher land (including to Dartmoor National Park), where gaps in hedgerows permit.

Cattle grazing floodplain pastures with mature, in-field trees.

Special qualities and features

Widespread sense of timelessness, resulting from the absence of modern (20th century) built development.

Dark night skies and a sense of tranquillity away from the influence of Launceston, large villages (e.g. Lewdown, Lifton and St Giles on the Heath) and the A30.

High levels of tranquillity around the edges of the area, locally reduced by main roads (e.g. A30, A388 and A386).

Impressive views to and from the northern part of Dartmoor National Park, contributing to its setting.

Occasional blocks of ancient woodland, often associated with parkland estates, including Sydenham House (Grade I registered) and Hayne Manor (Grade II*).

Scattering of traditional orchards, especially north and east of Launceston, and around Wrixhill Bridge.

County Wildlife Sites including wet woodland and valley-side woodland sites. Dartmoor Special Area of Conservation borders the east of the area.

Strong sense of time depth provided by prehistoric features, including bowl barrows (e.g. at Sandymoor Cross, St James's Church, Galford Down and Upcott Moor), and hilltop enclosures (e.g. at Hele and Lifton) - all Scheduled Monuments.

Several defensive sites (also Scheduled Monuments), including Sourton Civil War redoubt, and medieval motte and bailey castles in commanding positions (e.g. Burley Wood and Okehampton Castle).

Many historic structures associated with rivers, particularly the Lew, such as bridges, weirs, ponds and mills (e.g. Bidlake Mill and Leat Scheduled Monuments).

Conservation Areas covering the historic cores of Lifton, Stowford and Bridestowe, where there are clusters of listed buildings. Numerous listed buildings scattered elsewhere, including historic villages with Grade I listed churches.

Strong network of quiet lanes and public rights of way, including the Two Castles Trail long distance route connecting Okehampton with Launceston, and the largely traffic-free Granite Way cycle route (part of National Cycle Network route 27).

The nearby Roadford Lake Reservoir (just on the border in DCA 11) popular for recreation, with walks, fishing, sailing and camping.

An uninterrupted skyline above the dense, mixed wooded valley of the River Carey.

Forces for change and their landscape implications

Past and current

• The A30 main road which cuts across the grain of the landscape, bringing visual intrusion and reducing tranquillity.
• Agricultural intensification including conversion of pasture to arable, resulting in amalgamation of fields and loss of traditional hedgebanks and semi-natural habitats, such as wet pasture and rough grassland.
• Loss of traditional orchards, particularly on valley slopes (e.g. a large area to the east of St Giles on the Heath).
• Past replanting of ancient woodland with coniferous plantation.
• Invasive water-borne weeds such as Himalayan Balsam and knotweed colonising riverbanks to the detriment of native riparian vegetation.
• Farm diversification, including farm shops, equine activities, fishing lakes and game bird shoots which introduce new elements into the landscape.
• Linear spread of housing on the edges of settlements (e.g. near Bridstowe), some of which visually prominent on ridgelines (e.g. St Giles on the Heath).
• Renewable energy schemes introducing new elements into the landscape, including farm-based wind turbines (e.g. Nethercott and Rexton Cross Farms) as well as small solar arrays (e.g. south of Roadford Lake).
• Effects of climate change resulting in wetter and warmer winters, and more frequent hot and dry periods (increasing the risk of drought in summer), plus more frequent extreme weather events such as storms with more intense rainfall causing flooding in valleys.
• Increase in large scale agricultural buildings that are not obviously associated with existing farmsteads appear incongruous with the surrounding landscape.

Future

• Increased demand for both commercial and community-scale renewable energy schemes, as well as bio-energy crops, impacting on landscape character and views.
• Forthcoming changes to agricultural subsidies, including the new Environmental Land Management scheme (ELMs) which will pay landowners for the delivery of public goods and services, including for the restoration of nature. This may impact on traditional grazing management on wetlands and 'moors', and the management of landscape features such as Devon hedges.
• Longer growing season and enhanced vegetation growth rates as a result of climate change, including secondary woodland, resulting in a spread of such vegetation in the understorey of the area's semi-natural and estate woodlands.
• Increased flood risk and drought impacting on the river, tributaries and associated wetland/meadow habitats due climate change impacts. This could also lead to demand for engineered flood defenses.
• Increased levels of diffuse pollution from agriculture resulting in a detrimental effect on water quality and riparian biodiversity.
• Increase in UK-based tourism with associated requirements for new facilities and infrastructure, as well as an increase in traffic levels on the local road network (including characteristically quiet Devon green lanes).
• Pressure/demand for residential development around existing villages, hamlets and farmsteads, as well as farm conversions and new agricultural buildings on farms.
• Continued expansion of Launceston causing visual intrusion into the valley landscapes, and associated reductions in tranquillity and dark night skies.

Three wind turbines east of Tetcott visible in the skyline, partially interrupting the distant view of Dartmoor.

Landscape guidelines

Protect

• Protect locally distinctive built features such as linhays, sandstone bridges and white fingerposts.
• Protect the sparsely settled character of the landscape and the historic character setting of Conservation Areas at Lifton, Stowford and Bridestowe.
• Protect (and appropriately manage and interpret) the prehistoric archaeology of the area.
• Protect valuable Culm grassland habitats, resisting any further loss to agriculture or forestry.
• Protect traditional orchards which contribute to landscape structure and diversity.
• Protect the area's rural character and sense of openness, avoiding poorly sited development. Where appropriate, screen existing incongruous development with characteristic hedge/tree planting.
• Protect the network of quiet rural lanes, avoiding unsympathetic highways improvements, lighting or signage. Maintain hedgebanks which provide a sense of enclosure along the lanes.

Manage

• Manage Culm grassland and wetland habitats (with locally appropriate levels of grazing) to maximise their biodiversity value and strengthen their resilience to climate change.
• Manage areas of broadleaved woodland (including ancient woodland) using traditional techniques such as coppicing. Promote age and species diversity of woodlands for the benefit of biodiversity and to increase resilience to climate change.
• Manage forestry plantations for sustainable timber production and to enhance their wildlife interest. Explore the potential for community use of woodfuel as a sustainable resource, and the use of plantations as recreational sites, reducing visitor pressure on more sensitive Culm grassland habitats.
• Manage the area's varied hedgerows and hedgebanks, retaining local diversity in species, management styles and bank construction.
• Manage archaeological features in the landscape, ensuring appropriate levels of grazing and management of visitor pressure; provide interpretation where appropriate. Conserve the landscape setting of heritage features.

Plan

• Identify opportunities for enhancing agriculture as a result of market changes (including Brexit and increased demand for domestic food production) and the new Environmental Land Management Schemes. New crops may become viable as a result of climate change and the potential landscape impacts of these should be considered.
• Understand likely hydrological changes in watercourses resulting from climate change and the impact of these changes on flood risk. This could also lead to demand for flood defenses to protect existing structures. Natural flood defenses and allowing space for flooding on floodplains should be enhanced where appropriate.
• Link fragmented areas of semi-natural habitat including Culm grassland, wetlands and woodland to improve habitat connectivity and contribute to nature recovery networks. Strengthen ecological connections with the Dartmoor SAC to the east.
• Restore hedgerows where possible to reinforce historic field patterns and increase habitat linkages.
• Respond to the UK-wide policy drive for woodland planting in line with the Devon Local Nature Partnership 'Right Place, Right Tree' guidance. Ensure the distinctive characteristics of the landscape are retained and enhanced, including using new tree planting to help screen and soften visual impact of new built elements that detract from rural character.
• Extending woodland along and up the valley sides could make an important contribution to reducing flood risk, strengthening biodiversity corridors and improving water quality. Link up discrete areas of woodland, following the principles in Devon Local Nature Partnership's 'Right Place, Right Tree' guidance.
• Plan for the long-term restructuring of prominent conifer plantations to mixed, yet still productive woodlands. Soften and integrate the visual impact of coniferous plantations into the landscape with a mosaic of restored open habitats including Culm grassland. Explore opportunities for increased access and recreation provision where appropriate.
• Restore and manage areas of relict traditional orchards and explore opportunities for the creation of new ones (including community orchards) to increase local food production and access to nature.
• Increase countryside access through the enhancement of the public rights of way network and connectivity to and from larger settlements and green spaces.
• Ensure plans for new renewable energy developments consider landscape and visual effects (including cumulative effects) especially on south facing slopes and areas of high ground which are favorable for solar and wind development.
• Ensure future residential development is well planned, respecting the existing sparsely settled character and the local stone vernacular. Integrate new development into the landscape framework through the provision of a surrounding network of green spaces, wildlife habitats and recreational routes.

DCA 64 Upper Tamar Tributary Valleys (PDF) [1MB]

A distant view of Dartmoor from south of Shebbear, across farmland with a dense hedgerow network and extensive areas of woodland.

Contextual description

This Devon Character Area (DCA) comprises elevated farmland to the west of the Torridge Valley, and includes the upper western reaches of the river. The boundary with the Torridge Valley DCA is defined by changes in landform and vegetation. To the south (beyond the upper reaches of the River Torridge) is the High Torridge Culm Plateau DCA, and to the west and north there is a gradual transition to the more extensive forests and unimproved grassland of the Western Culm Plateau DCA. The majority of the DCA is within Torridge District, with the south-eastern corner extending into West Devon.

Link to National Character Areas and Constituent Landscape Character Types

Constituent Landscape Character Types (LCTs) include 3A Upper Farmed and Wooded Valley Slopes, 3C Sparsely Settled Farmed Valley Floors, 3G River Valley Slopes and Combes (within West Devon Borough), 5A Inland Elevated Undulating Land and 5D Estate Wooded Farmland.

This DCA falls within The Culm National Character Area (NCA 149).

Summary character description

An undulating, agricultural landscape with a strong sense of history and long-term management. The extensive woodlands, hedgerows and parklands give the area a pastoral character and a verdant, settled quality. Its historic character is enhanced by the stone bridges, linhays, medieval castles, square church towers and prehistoric barrows which are distinctive features of the landscape. Winding lanes are enclosed by colourful flower-rich hedgebanks, and gaps through hedges on higher ground afford long, open views stretching to Dartmoor.

Historic parkland at Heanton Satchville viewed from the A386.

Distinctive characteristics

• Underlying Culm measures geology of siltstones, sandstones and mudstones creating a strongly undulating landform; and extensive ball clay deposits around Merton.
• Numerous small streams (often spring-fed) including the upper reaches of the River Torridge, which have incised shallow valleys.
• A generally pastoral landscape on medium-quality soils, but with areas of intensive arable production on better quality soils.
• Strong field patterns of medieval and post-medieval origin, generally older and more sinuous around villages and on valley sides. Fields often enclosed by species-rich Devon hedges with flower- and fern-rich banks.
• Well-treed, particularly in the south where estate planting is an influence. Cover comprises frequent copses, small woodlands, occasional in-field veteran parkland trees, and occasional small plantation blocks.
• Variety of semi-natural habitats, including species-rich Culm grassland, valley mire, wet woodland and damp meadows associated with tributary valleys and springs.
• Prehistoric and medieval features, as well as traditional linhays and landmark church towers (e.g. Sheepwash) contributing to sense of place and time-depth.
• Historic parkland estates influence landscape character, particularly in the south of the area.
• Dispersed historic villages and hamlets clustered on hilltops; scattered farmsteads linked by a network of winding rural roads; and steep sunken lanes crossing watercourses on stone bridges.
• Occasional straighter roads and green lanes across higher ground (often associated with prehistoric barrows) indicating ancient routes. White fingerposts are distinctive at crossing points.
• Strong local vernacular of whitewash and white/cream rendered cottages with painted window and door frames and slate or thatch roofs; some buildings of exposed local stone with red brick detailing.
• Mostly a managed, working landscape, but with patches of gorse on higher slopes giving some areas an upland feel (e.g. around Abbots Bickington).
• Ball clay works at Marland Moor and Meeth create a localised industrial character.
• Much of the area is not accessible by main road, and therefore feels remote and tranquil.
• An open landscape with important vantage points and uninterrupted vistas from higher ground. Views stretch to Dartmoor National Park from the southern part of the landscape.

A distant view of Merton with its square church tower from north of Petrockstowe near Marland Moor, over a recently cut hay field surrounded by dense woodland.

Sheep grazing historic parkland at Heanton Sanchville.

Special qualities and features

Regionally Important Geological Site displaying isolated tertiary quartzite boulders near Shebbear.

Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) at Langtree Common Moor (unimproved Culm grassland) and Dunsland Park (outstanding variety of lichens). Numerous County Wildlife Sites covering grassland, woodland and wetland habitats. Stapleton Mire is managed as a Nature Reserve.

Extensive ancient semi-natural woodlands, particularly on valley sides in the upper reaches of the River Torridge, where they assume a linear form.

Medieval strip field system and associated hedgebanks around Sheepwash.

Historic parkland estates, including Heanton Satchville and Buckland Filleigh, with parkland trees providing a rich habitat for lichen, invertebrates and uncommon species of bats.

Several Scheduled Monuments, including prehistoric barrows, medieval castles at Durpley and Woodford Wood, the medieval ruins of Frithelstock Priory, a moated site at Grange Farm (Merton) and an Iron Age hillfort at Hembury Castle.

Conservation Areas covering the historic village cores of Merton and Sheepwash. Listed buildings scattered throughout the area, with small clusters at Petrockstowe and Meeth.

Recreational value provided by the popular Tarka Trail walking and cycling route, National Cycle Network route 3 across the south of the area, as well as green lanes and small commons.

Panoramic views across and into the Torridge Valley and distant views to Dartmoor to the south. The DCA also forms a key backdrop to views from a wide area.

Generally high levels of tranquillity (locally reduced by the presence of main roads) and very low levels of light pollution, resulting in starlit skies.

Narrow rural lane near Thornbury with views over trimmed flower-rich hedges across pastoral farmland and a wooded tributary valley of the River Torridge.

Tributary valley of the River Torridge near Thornbury; wooded along its course with pastoral farmland on the valley slopes.

Forces for change and their landscape implications

Past and current

• Lack of management (particularly coppicing) of small, privately-owned woodlands and spread of invasive exotic species.
• 20th century planting of coniferous woodlands creating prominent geometric shapes within the agricultural landscape.
• Lack of recent planting in parklands to replace over-mature specimen trees.
• Loss of trees resulting from spread of ash dieback (Hymenoscyphus fraxineus) disease.
• Farm amalgamation and modernisation, with large agricultural buildings often occupying prominent positions (e.g. large dairy enterprises around Sheepwash).
• Past agricultural intensification leading to hedgerow loss and changing the pastoral character, with the introduction of intensive cropping including maize.
• Hedgerow removal and widening of farm gateways in arable areas, poor management of hedgerows resulting in reduced wildlife value, loss of stockproofing, and reduced scenic quality.
• Farm diversification (e.g. equine businesses and alpaca farming) changing landscape character.
• New buildings that are not always sensitively sited or designed.
• Ball clay working and landfill on Marland Moor is locally visually intrusive and introduces an industrial character to this part of the area.
• Electricity transmission lines and pylons running across the centre and north-west of the area.
• Domestic wind turbines (e.g. three turbines near Bulkworthy) locally impacting on views and perceptions of undeveloped, rural character.
• Small-scale residential development on the outskirts of villages (e.g. Stibbs Cross).
• Noise and visual intrusion from main roads (e.g. A388 and A386), locally eroding tranquillity.
• Effects of climate change resulting in wetter and warmer winters, and more frequent hot and dry periods (increasing the risk of drought in summer), plus more frequent extreme weather events such as storms with more intense rainfall causing flooding particularly on lower ground.

Future

• Forthcoming changes to agricultural subsidies, including the new Environmental Land Management scheme (ELMs) which will pay landowners for the delivery of public goods and services, including for the restoration of nature..
• Actions arising from the North Devon UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Nature Recovery Plan, 2021-25 which aim to make space for nature, restore ecosystems and increase landscape dynamism by integrating nature recovery into the management of land within the Biosphere.
• Potential change in ownership of parkland estates, affecting their character and management.
• On-going climate change affecting growing seasons, weather patterns and storm frequency, potentially affecting farming practices, parkland trees and woodlands.
• New pests, diseases and pathogens (e.g. Ash dieback and Phytophthora) affecting tree species composition and distribution (including hedgerow trees and other trees outside of woodlands), affecting landscape character.
• Potential changes in hydrology resulting from climate change. Increased levels of flooding and drought impacting on the Torridge catchment and associated wetland habitats due to changes in weather patterns and more frequent extreme weather events. This could also lead to demand for engineered flood defenses.
• Increased levels of diffuse pollution from agriculture, affecting water quality and riparian wildlife.
• Continued demand for renewable energy, including wind farms on higher ground, solar arrays, bio-energy crops and domestic-scale renewables, with potential cumulative effects on the landscape.
• Future increase in recreation facilities such as camping and 'glamping' sites, often as part of farm diversification enterprises.

Part-cleared plantation north of Langtree.

Landscape guidelines

Protect

• Protect (and restore where appropriate) historic features such as church towers, linhays, fingerposts and bridges.
• Protect historic field patterns, particularly the preserved strip fields around Sheepwash.
• Protect local vernacular styles and avoid settlement spread along ridgelines; any new development should respect traditional styles and forms, whilst incorporating sustainable design.
• Protect the historic character and setting of the Conservation Areas at Merton and Sheepwash.
• Protect important local views and vistas including panoramic views across the Torridge Valley,(avoiding new woodland planting or development which could obscure these). Protect the local winding road network and its associated fern- and flower-rich banks, resisting unsympathetic highways improvements, lighting or signage.
• Protect the role of the area as a rural backdrop in views from adjacent landscapes, including Dartmoor National Park in the south.
• Protect the area's dark night skies through (for example) resistance to street lighting schemes in deeply rural and intrinsically dark countryside.

Manage

• Manage semi-natural habitats such as Culm grassland and wet meadows, including through appropriate grazing; encourage farms to manage these 'marginal' areas as integral parts of their farming systems.
• Manage ancient and estate woodlands through traditional techniques such as coppicing, and control grazing levels by deer and livestock to encourage longevity and ground flora.
• Manage the distinctive character of veteran trees and parkland estates, including the retention of veteran and dead/dying trees as key wildlife habitats, pollarding where appropriate and planting the next generation of (climate resilient) specimen trees.
• Promote careful management of park grasslands to prevent damage to tree root systems through nutrient enrichment and compaction associated with agricultural activities.
• Manage existing plantations, seeking to enhance their biodiversity value, and explore opportunities for reversion to a mixed structure with open grassland habitats upon maturity and felling.
• Manage archaeological sites and their settings, ensuring appropriate levels of grazing and management of visitor pressure. Provide interpretation where appropriate.
• Manage hedgebanks and hedgerows to be more productive and resilient to climate change whilst enhancing biodiversity and local distinctiveness, encouraging locally distinctive species and cutting regimes (encouraging longer cycles between cutting to enhance biodiversity value).
• Sustainably manage popular visitor destinations and promoted routes including the Tarka Trail to reduce impacts of visitor pressure (such as increased litter and footpath erosion).

Plan

• Identify opportunities for enhancing agriculture (e.g. through the new Environmental Land Management scheme) that would reinforce local distinctiveness and beauty of the countryside whilst also delivering other objectives, for example restoring ponds, hedgerows, orchards and copses as part of the farming landscape.
• Restore lost or degraded lengths of hedgerow to strengthen ecological connectivity and natural flood management whilst respecting the characteristic local field patterns. Follow guidelines published by Devon Hedge Group.
• Create, extend and link woodland and wetland habitats to improve connectivity, enhance the water storage capacity of the landscape (reducing incidences of downstream flooding) and improve water quality through reducing soil erosion and agricultural run-off. Extending woodland along and up the valley sides (through both natural regeneration and planting) could help reduce flood risk, improve water quality and contribute to nature recovery.
• Respond to the UK-wide policy drive for woodland planting in line with the Devon Local Nature Partnership 'Right Place, Right Tree' guidance to ensure the distinctive characteristics of the landscape are retained and enhanced, including using new tree planting to help screen and soften visual impact of new built elements that detract from rural character.
• Soften and integrate the visual impact of productive woodland into the landscape with broadleaf woodland edges and dynamic scrub habitat.
• Plant replacement parkland trees as many existing specimens are reaching maturity; encourage open-grown trees within the wider countryside.
• Plan for changes to the watercourses resulting from climate change. This could also lead to demand for flood defences to protect existing structures. Natural flood defences and making space for flooding should be encouraged where appropriate within the landscape (e.g. using areas of floodplain grazing marsh along the River Torridge).
• Ensure plans for new renewable energy developments consider landscape and visual effects, including cumulative effects, especially on south facing slopes and areas of high ground which are favourable for solar and wind development.
• Ensure new facilities and infrastructure to meet increased tourism demand are sensitively sited and designed to conserve and enhance the distinctive characteristics, valued attributes and special qualities of the landscape that make it attractive to visitors. Improve the screening and integration of ball clay works and other intrusive developments into the landscape.
• Ensure future residential development respects and complements the existing settlement character of dispersed hilltop villages and hamlets and sparsely settled valley floors, and the traditional vernacular of whitewash and white/cream rendered cottages.
• Integrate new development (residential and commercial) into the landscape framework through the provision of a surrounding network of green spaces, wildlife habitats and recreational routes.
• Ensure that where artificial lighting is required it is sensitively designed to limit light pollution and to retain the starlit skies, a highly valued characteristic of the area.

DCA 65 West Torridge Upland Farmland (PDF) [1MB]

View west from Bursdon Moor towards the coast with Hartland Point radar dome and the shadow-like profile of Lundy on the horizon.

Contextual description

This extensive area is located on the western edge of Torridge District and comprises elevated upland farmland and Culm grassland. Its western boundary is defined by the county boundary with Cornwall. To the north are the Hartland Peninsula and the Bideford Bay Coast DCAs, where the landscape changes from grassland and plantation to more intensive agricultural use and coastal influences become stronger. To the east is the more incised landscape of the Western Torridge Upland Farmland DCA, while to the south there is a gradual transition into the High Torridge Culm Plateau and the Upper Tamar Tributary Valleys DCAs.

Link to National Character Areas and Constituent Landscape Character Types

Constituent LCTs: 1F Farmed Lowland Moorland and Culm Grassland, 5A Inland Elevated Undulating Land, 3C Sparsely Settled Farmed Valley Floors and 3H Secluded Valleys.

This DCA falls within The Culm National Character Area (NCA 149).

Summary character description

This is an elevated, expansive landscape forming a series of ridges, with long views from high ground. Dartmoor provides a backdrop to the southern part of the area; the sea forms the horizons from the north. There are extensive areas of Culm grassland, which can feel bleak and exposed, but are rich in prehistoric archaeology and of international importance for their biodiversity. Some areas have been planted in the past for forestry, and the dark colours and abrupt edges of the large conifer plantations that remain contrast with the softer deciduous vegetation in the valleys. The farmed landscape of the valleys also conveys a more settled 'working' character than the Culm grasslands of the moors above. It includes pastoral fields, scattered whitewashed farms and occasional larger settlements such as Bradworthy and Holsworthy.

Locally distinctive North Devon 'Ruby Red' cattle grazing Culm grasslands.

Distinctive characteristics

• Underlying geology of Culm Measures, comprising smooth banks of mudstones and siltstones, and harder outcrops of sandstone which create broad ridges. These give rise to poorly drained, acidic soils.
• Elevated, open land cut by a series of tributaries forming folds in the landform.
• Parts of the area have a farmed character, with fields grazed by cattle and sheep, while others are characterised by roughly grazed, open Culm grasslands and rushy meadows.
• Medium-scale regular fields of recent enclosure on higher ground; pockets of smaller fields of medieval origin on valley slopes.
• Fields enclosed by mixed-species hedges, with flower-rich banks and hedgerow trees in sheltered locations. Locally distinctive hedges topped with gorse and beech feature around Holsworthy.
• Tributary valleys with broadleaved and wet woodlands providing shelter and texture, contrasting with extensive conifer blocks on upland areas, with many now being restructured/felled. Avenues of mature beech are found on summits and along roadsides.
• Extensive Culm grasslands supporting a diverse range of species including ground-nesting birds and the marsh-fritillary butterfly. Fen and rush pasture, valley mire, unimproved wet grassland and riparian/ valley-side woodland provide further habitat interest.
• Scattered archaeological features, including clusters of Bronze Age bowl barrows on summits, possibly part of a wider prehistoric landscape incorporating Clovelly Dykes (in DCA 3).
• Farms often sited on exposed ridges with shelter planting, while nucleated villages tend to occupy prominent ridgeline positions with linear development often spreading out from the historic core.
• Local vernacular of white-washed or local sandstone buildings, often with red brick detailing, and with slate or thatched roofs.
• Square church towers with ornate pinnacles creating distinctive local landmarks (e.g. Bradworthy, Buckland Brewer and Bridgerule).
• Locally distinctive linhays (livestock shelters) of local stone and cob.
• Straight roads traversing ridges and dipping down into valleys, crossing streams on sandstone bridges, with white fingerposts at road junctions.
• Views to an open seascape from the northern part of the area including to Lundy Island on the horizon.
• Individual farm-based wind turbines are prevalent in views across the landscape and to adjacent areas. There is a three-turbine wind farm at Forest Moor, near Pitworthy.

Landmark square church tower partially visible above the trees at Churchtown, north-east of Bridgerule.

Special qualities and features

Long views from high ground across open landscapes to the sea in the north and Dartmoor and Bodmin Moor in the south.

Strong rural character with a sense of remoteness, particularly in the Culm grassland areas, and away from main roads and settlements.

Culm grasslands, including Bursdon Moor, Thorne Moor, Bradworthy Common,internationally valued as part of the Culm Grasslands Special Area of Conservation. Several other Culm grassland areas are Sites of Special Scientific Interest and County Wildlife Sites.

Dunsdon National Nature Reserve provides public access and interpretation of the important Culm grassland habitats present.

The distinctive sight of local North Devon 'Ruby Red' cattle grazing the grasslands results in the area being affectionately known as 'Ruby Country'.

Regionally Important Geological Site covering geological exposure at Bradworthy Mill Quarry.

Numerous prehistoric barrow sites scattered across the LCT, many of which are Scheduled Monuments.

Conservation Areas covering the historic cores of Holsworthy, Bradworthy and Buckland Brewer.

Areas of open access land providing opportunities to experience the landscape, including Bradworthy and Bursdon Commons and Thorne Moor, as well as within Forestry Commission-managed plantations.

Relatively high levels of tranquillity in the central and northern parts of the area, and dark night skies away from the influence of Holsworthy.

Forces for change and their landscape implications

Past and current

• Agricultural intensification and amalgamation of farm units into larger, more economically viable holdings.
• Localised loss or poor management of traditional landscape features such as hedgerows and linhays.
• Fragmentation of Culm grassland habitats due to agricultural improvement and drainage.
• Poor management of some remaining Culm grassland areas, including under-grazing leading to scrubbing up, and over-grazing leading to a uniform grass sward.
• Introduction of 20th century conifer plantations within the open landscape, and decline in levels of traditional woodland management (e,g, coppicing) in the area's broadleaved woodlands.
• Some areas of plantation have been felled and restored to semi-natural heathland/Culm grassland (e.g. Dunsdon National Nature Reserve).
• Introduction of new elements into the landscape, including reservoirs in the Tamar Valley and farm diversification schemes such as fisheries, campsites, shooting ranges and equestrian centres.
• New residential development on settlement edges (e.g. at Buckland Brewer and Holsworthy). Linear spread of housing outside some settlements' historic cores and infill development within; often prominent on ridgelines.
• Industrial development (including a biogas plant) on the edge of Holsworthy.
• Prominent pylon lines, wind turbines near Bradworthy, industrial developments outside Holsworthy and busy roads (e.g. the main A388 and A39) intrude on the strongly rural character of the landscape.
• Increase in tourist, farm and industrial traffic, resulting in localised areas of congestion on the rural road network.
• Growth in tourism and recreation, including camping/caravan sites in prominent locations. Nearby reservoirs (Upper & Tamar Lakes) are popular visitor and recreation facilities.
• Wind turbines and windfarms becoming increasingly prevalent in the landscape, including single domestic-scale turbines associated with farms.
• Solar farms becoming more common - including 51ha solar farm at Pitworthy and 11ha at Bradford Manor, as well as scattered domestic-scale sites.
• Effects of climate change resulting in wetter and warmer winters, and more frequent hot and dry periods, increasing the risk of drought in summer, as well as more frequent extreme weather events such as storms, with more intense rainfall causing flooding.

Wind turbines are increasingly prevalent in the landscape, including at Galsworthy Moor near Stibb Cross.

Future

• Forthcoming changes to agricultural subsidies, including the new ELMs scheme (which will pay landowners for the delivery of public goods and services, including for the restoration of nature) potentially affecting farm viability, land use, farming techniques (including regenerative practices) and management of characteristic landscape features such as hedgerows and linhays.
• Ongoing demand for commercial wind farms on the high open ridges, as well as other renewable energy schemes within the farmed landscape, including biomass crops, solar farms and domestic-scale renewables which could have a cumulative landscape impact.
• Further development pressure (housing, commercial and industrial) around the main settlements due the attractiveness of the area as a place to live.
• Increase in tourism and recreation, and continued farm diversification for campsites/visitor accommodation, potentially changing the character of the landscape and reducing its tranquillity.
• Ongoing climate change affecting weather patterns, storm frequency and growing seasons, in turn affecting farming practices and the species composition of Culm grasslands.
• Felling and replanting/restructuring of forestry plantations (with more mixed species composition and restored open habitats) as they reach maturity.
• Potential changes in species composition and distribution of broadleaved woodland as a result of new pests, pathogens/diseases (including Ash dieback and Phytophthora) and changing climatic conditions, affecting landscape character.
• Potential for future woodland and riparian planting to reduce downstream flooding and increase carbon sequestration.

An area of felled conifer plantation and heathland/grassland restoration at Winslade Plantation.

Landscape guidelines

Protect

• Protect locally distinctive built features such as linhays, sandstone bridges and white fingerposts; ensure that any new building respects local vernacular styles (whilst incorporating sustainable design).
• Protect the farming and land management traditions of the area, continuing to support local farmers to extensively graze remaining areas of Culm grassland, fen, meadow and mire as integral parts of their farming systems.
• Protect the landscape's pattern of dispersed farmsteads and nucleated villages on ridgetops. Resist the further spread of new development outside historic cores, including along roads, and manage levels of lighting to preserve dark night skies.
• Protect and appropriately manage the prehistoric archaeology of the area, including numerous bowl barrows atop the hills and ridges. This should include grazing at appropriate levels and recreation management, including sensitive interpretation.
• Protect the landscape's variety of traditional building styles, including white-washed and exposed stone, often with red brick detailing, and slate or thatch as roofing materials.
• Protect the area's rural character, sense of openness and long views, avoiding poorly-sited development.
• Characteristic landscape features such as white wooden finger posts, sandstone bridges and linhays should be retained and kept in a good state of repair.
• Protect the landscape's strong sense of tranquillity and remoteness and long-ranging views (including to Dartmoor National Park), avoiding the location of new development on prominent, open ridgelines,

Manage

• Manage Culm grassland and wetland habitats (with locally appropriate levels of grazing) to maximise their biodiversity and strengthen their resilience to climate change.
• Manage forestry plantations for sustainable timber production and to enhance their wildlife interest.
• Explore the potential for community use of woodfuel as a sustainable resource, and the use of plantations as recreational sites, reducing visitor pressure on more sensitive Culm grassland habitats. Consider softening the edges of plantations with native broadleaved species.
• Manage the landscape's varied Devon hedgebanks and avenues of trees, reflecting local variations in styles and species composition. Reinstate coppicing and hedge laying to neglected sections, planting new trees where specimens are over-mature (consider using climate-hardy species to ensure longevity).

Plan

• Plan for changes (and opportunities) affecting the agricultural sector as a result of market pressures (including Brexit and increased demand for domestic food production) and the new Environmental Land Management schemes. New crops may also become viable as a result of climate change and the potential landscape impacts of these should be considered.
• Link up fragmented areas of Culm grassland to improve habitat connectivity, resilience to climate change, and to contribute to nature recovery networks, utilising hedgerows and hedge banks as habitat corridors and creating new ones where appropriate.
• Restore lost or degraded lengths of hedgerows to reinforce medieval field patterns, contribute to ecological networks, and to limit agricultural run-off into the stream valleys.
• Plan for the long-term restoration of the more prominent conifer plantations to a mosaic of mixed productive woodlands and open habitats, including re-creating Culm grasslands and other semi-natural habitats within open rides and on areas of wet ground. Pursue opportunities to enhance access and recreation opportunities within the plantations.
• Implement Devon Local Nature Partnership's 'Right Place, Right Tree' principles in new tree/woodland planting, aiming to create a balance of climate-resilient native species appropriate to the local landscape. Avoid planting in locations where there would be an adverse impact on the special qualities of the landscape, including attractive vistas and characteristically open areas.
• Ensure future residential development is carefully sited and designed in accordance with sustainable development principles.
• Any new development should utilise local vernacular materials and building styles wherever possible, whilst pursuing low carbon/sustainable credentials.
• Where possible, mitigate existing poorly sited/designed development. Avoid linear development along ridgelines in prominent locations.
• Develop a network of green spaces and green sustainable infrastructure links to support future population growth in nearby settlements (including Holsworthy and Bradworthy), integrating development into the landscape and providing local spaces for access and recreation.
• Sustainably manage and enhance recreational activities and land uses. Seek a balance between encouraging access and reconnection with the landscape whilst retaining its rural and tranquil qualities.
• Strengthen the landscape's resilience to climate change, including through planting along watercourses to enhance water storage capacity in times of drought, and flood prevention during episodes of high rainfall.
• Ensure future energy and telecoms infrastructure including masts and renewable energy installations are sited in appropriate locations and consider landscape and visual effects (including cumulative effects), especially on south facing slopes and areas of high ground which are favorable for solar and wind development.

DCA 66 Western Culm Plateau (PDF) [1MB]

Uninterrupted view towards Rackenford from the south-east, across pastoral farmland bounded by hedgerows with scattered mature trees.

Contextual description

This Devon Character Area (DCA) comprises elevated land lying between the Taw Valley to the west (in Torridge District) and the Exe Valley and Cruwys Morchard Wooded and Farmed Valleys DCAs to the east (in Mid Devon district). To the north/north-west is a gradual transition into the South Molton Farmland DCA, and to the south a gradual transition to the lower and more intensively farmed Crediton Rolling Farmlands DCA (in Mid Devon district).

Link to National Character Areas and Constituent Landscape Character Types

Constituent Landscape Character Types (LCTs) include 1F Farmed Lowland Moorland and Culm Grassland, 3A Upper Farmed and Wooded Valley Slopes, 3H Secluded Valleys, 5D Estate Wooded Farmland and 3C Sparsely Settled Farmed Valley Floors (partially within Mid Devon district).

This DCA falls within The Culm National Character Area (NCA 149) and the northernmost tip is within Exmoor National Character Area (NCA 145).

Summary character description

An elevated, open landscape with long views to Dartmoor and Exmoor. Within the patchwork of pastoral fields are extensive areas of rough Culm grassland and heathland. These Culm 'moors' have a strong sense of remoteness, which is accentuated by the relative lack of settlement and the wind-sculpted trees and hedgerows. These areas give an impression of how many parts of Devon might have looked before agricultural improvements such as drainage, ploughing and fertiliser application. The presence in the landscape of numerous clusters of prehistoric barrows adds to this sense of history and timelessness. The strong textures of plantations, beech hedgerows, heathland and grasslands contrast with the smooth improved agricultural fields which surround them. Patches of colour in the landscape change with the seasons; golden, brown and green grasses, purple heather and bright yellow gorse.

Part of the Culm grasslands Special Area of Conservation (Knowstone Inner Moor) viewed from the north east, bisected in the centre by the A361.

Distinctive characteristics

• Underlying Culm Measures geology of mudstones and siltstones with bands of sandstone, supporting poorly-drained soils.
• A gently rolling topography comprising a series of east-west ridges cut by tributary valleys (e.g. Crooked Oak, Sturcombe and Little Dart), some of which are included within neighbouring DCAs.
• Numerous streams, fed by springs and bogs, flowing through shallow valleys into the wider tributary valleys of the Taw and Exe.
• Pastoral fields of sheep/cattle grazing on medium to poor quality soils; rough grazing manages the unimproved Culm grassland and heath. Red deer are often spotted within the landscape.
• Complex field patterns, including areas of small, irregularly shaped medieval fields (e.g. around Creacombe and Rackenford) and other areas of post-medieval and modern fields, often on higher land.
• Fields and rural lanes bound by hedgerows and banks, usually topped by beech on higher land, but more species-rich at lower elevations. Wind-sculpted beech hedges form characteristic skyline features at the upland edge.
• A relatively well-treed landscape, with linear broadleaved woodland in valleys; patches of plantation on higher ground; pockets of scrub on unimproved grasslands, and strong patterns of hedgerow trees.
• The wooded estate of Rackenford Manor locally influences the character of the landscape.
• Extensive Culm grassland habitats of wet heath, rich flushes, valley mires, fen and marshy grasslands.
• Numerous clusters of prehistoric barrows and earthworks in prominent hilltop locations.
• Many historic features within the fabric of the landscape including farmhouses, traditional orchards, manor houses, lanes, tracks, field boundaries, bridges and churches.
• Scattered farms on valley sides (often set back along access tracks) with occasional clustered villages or hamlets in ridge-top positions. The square tower of Witheridge church is a local landmark.
• Variety of vernacular building styles, including white/ cream rendered cob or stone with slate or thatched roofs.
• Network of steep, narrow lanes, with valleys; straight roads across high ground indicating ancient routes. White fingerposts at crossroads form characteristic features of the lanes.
• The A361 North Devon Link Road cuts through the landscape, bisecting areas of Culm grassland and diluting local levels of tranquillity.
• Long views north to Exmoor and south to Dartmoor particularly from the east of the area.
• Wind turbines at Batsworthy Cross interrupt views to Dartmoor and across the north of the area.

Cattle (including Ruby Red North Devon, a native breed) grazing internationally important Culm grasslands, with distant views north towards Exmoor National Park.

Special qualities and features

Northern part of the area visible in the panoramic views southwards from Exmoor National Park, making an important contribution to the setting of the nationally designated landscape.

High scenic quality, particularly in the north and on the Culm grasslands, which have a similar character to parts of Exmoor.

Internationally and nationally designated (Special Area of Conservation (SAC) and Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)) Culm grassland and heathland habitats, supporting a range of plants, invertebrates (including the rare Marsh Fritillary) and breeding birds.

Largest remaining area of Culm grassland habitats in Devon at Knowstone Inner and Outer Moors, Hares Down and Rackenford Moor.

Pockets of ancient woodland (semi-natural and replanted), particularly extensive around Templeton in the southern part of the area.

Numerous County Wildlife Sites, including woodland, unimproved grassland and wetland sites.

Numerous prehistoric features designated as Scheduled Monuments, including individual barrows, barrow cemeteries, hillforts at Burridge Camp and Berry Castle, and an enclosure at East Kidland Wood Camp Other heritage assets include a medieval ringwork castle near Stone Barton and the churchyard cross at Romansleigh.

Conservation Areas covering the historic village cores of Witheridge, Lapford, Chawleigh and Knowstone, where there are clusters of listed buildings and characteristic square stone churches.

Valuable for recreation with two long-distance walking routes crossing the area (Two Moors Way and Ridge and Valley Walk) and areas of common land providing public access (including the largest Culm grassland sites).

Away from the A361, a landscape with a strong sense of remoteness and a timeless quality - one of the most extensive tranquil areas in Devon, with exceptionally dark night skies.

Forces for change and their landscape implications

Past and current

• The A361 which crosses Culm grassland at Hare's Down and Knowstone Moors and the picnic and service area nearby at Beaples Moor, bringing localised visual intrusion, loss of tranquility and light pollution.
• Localised visual impacts from ridge-top settlement expansion at Witheridge and telecommunications masts (e.g. Stoodleigh Beacon).
• The nine 100m wind turbines at Batsworthy Cross form a prominent feature in the landscape (also visible from surrounding areas), combined with isolated single farm turbines associated with farms.
• Past loss and fragmentation of Culm grassland habitats as a result of drainage and improvement of land for agriculture.
• Past planting of coniferous plantations on former areas of Culm grassland.
• Tensions between the requirements of nature conservation (SAC/SSSIs) and traditional farming and commoning practices.
• Agricultural intensification leading to loss of landscape features such as hedgerows (particularly in the southern part of the area).
• The development of occasional large farm buildings such as barns and chicken sheds reflecting some industrial-scale farming impacting on character.
• Farm diversification resulting in the introduction of new elements into the landscape (e.g. pony paddocks, fisheries and caravan sites).
• The localised appearance of neglect in some farmland due to ongoing decline in the agricultural economy, including overgrown hedges, derelict farm buildings, and inappropriate farm building repairs.
• Effects of climate change resulting in wetter and warmer winters, and more frequent hot and dry periods (increasing the risk of drought in summer), plus more frequent extreme weather events impacting agriculture and important habitats (e.g. Culm grasslands).

Future

• Forthcoming changes to agricultural subsidies, including the new Environmental Land Management scheme (ELMs) which will pay landowners for the delivery of public goods and services, including for the restoration of nature. This may affect the viability of 'marginal' farming on the Culm grasslands and moors and management of Culm grassland by commoners.
• Potential future demand for tourism and recreation development leading to increased farm diversification, change in the working agricultural landscape and potential increase in traffic levels.
• Population growth and settlement expansion, along with the need for supporting infrastructure and services.
• Continued demand for commercial wind farms (particularly on the elevated plateau with high wind resource) as well as domestic turbines, introducing further large scale structures into the open landscape.
• Potential future demand for other renewable energy schemes developments as solar arrays and bio-energy crops, along with community renewables projects, which could have a cumulative effect on the built fabric of the area.
• The impacts of climate change on weather patterns and growing seasons, potentially affecting Culm grassland and other open habitats (e.g. through increased summer droughts and more rapid scrub growth) and traditional agricultural practices.
• Increased frequency of storms, and new pests, diseases and pathogens (e.g. Phytophthora) due to climate change, potentially affecting hedgerow trees and linear woodland.
• UK-wide drive for increased woodland planting to deliver a range of ecosystem services and public benefits.
• Demand for residential development on villages' outskirts and rural locations, including farm/barn conversions.

103m-tall wind turbines at Batsworthy Cross visible on the skyline viewed from the west (along the Two Moors Way).

Sheep grazing pasture above a large farm and farm buildings with two wind turbines (from the Two Moors Way looking east towards Rackenford).

Landscape guidelines

Protect

• Protect the setting of Exmoor National Park, avoiding the introduction of prominent features into the expansive and unspoilt views from the southern edge of the National Park.
• Protect remaining areas of Culm grassland habitat, resisting any further development which would be detrimental to their appearance or biodiversity value.
• Protect the farming and land management traditions of the area, continuing to support local farmers to graze the Culm grasslands and lowland moors as integral parts of their farming system.
• Protect the area's high levels of tranquillity, dark night skies and sense of remoteness, avoiding insensitively-sited or visually intrusive development, particularly on prominent, open ridgelines,
• Protect the landscape's sparse settlement pattern. Resist the further spread of new development outside the limits of the landscape's villages and hamlets, including along roads.
• Protect and appropriately manage archaeological and historical features within the landscape, including prehistoric hilltop monuments and traditional farm buildings.
• Protect the landscape's rural character, repairing or restoring distinctive structures such as white fingerposts that contribute to distinctiveness.
• Protect and manage surviving traditional orchards.
• Protect wind-sculpted beech trees and hedgerows on high land, replacing if necessary to ensure their continued presence in the landscape.
• Protect beaver populations on the Little Dart River and explore the potential for their reintroduction into other systems.

Manage

• Manage farmland and associated features such as hedgerows, retaining the area's character of a working, agricultural landscape.
• Manage Culm grassland and unimproved grassland areas, including through managed burning and locally appropriate levels of grazing; encourage farmers and commoners to manage 'marginal' land as an integral part of the wider farming regime.
• Manage archaeological sites (e.g. through clearance/ suitable levels of grazing), providing sensitive interpretation features where appropriate.
• Manage the area's existing plantations for sustainable timber production and wildlife interest, creating new green links to surrounding semi-natural habitats and moving towards mixed species composition wherever possible. Explore their use as recreational spaces away from the more sensitive habitats surrounding them.
• Manage woodland using traditional techniques (e.g. coppicing) for age and species diversity.

Plan

• Utilise the new Environmental Land Management scheme (ELMs) and other initiatives such as Local Nature Recovery Strategies (as they emerge) to manage and enhance the wildlife interest of the farmed landscape.
• Expand and link fragmented Culm grassland habitats to increase biodiversity value, resilience to climate change and to contribute to wider nature recovery networks.
• Diversify and enhance future sustainability of the area's conifer plantations, exploring opportunities for mixed stocking, the restoration of open habitats such as Culm Grasslands, and improved access and recreation.
• Ensure new facilities and infrastructure to meet increased tourism demand are sensitively sited and designed to conserve and enhance the distinctive characteristics, valued attributes and special qualities of the landscape that make it attractive to visitors.
• Seek opportunities to expand the public rights of way network including creation of new public access routes to better connect rural settlements to the land surrounding them.
• Ensure plans for new renewable energy developments consider landscape and visual effects (including cumulative effects) so that these can be sited in appropriate locations and their impacts mitigated through careful design, siting development away from where it will impact upon open views (including to Dartmoor and Exmoor).
• Sensitively incorporate future residential development to accommodate population growth and the popularity of the area as a place to live. Development should include a network of green infrastructure links to contribute to biodiversity and improved recreational access, linking to existing long-distance routes where possible.
• Restore lost or degraded lengths of hedgerow to strengthen ecological connectivity and natural flood management whilst respecting the characteristic local field patterns. Follow guidelines published by Devon Hedge Group.
• Respond to the UK-wide policy drive for increased tree and woodland planting, implementing Devon Local Nature Partnership's 'Right Place, Right Tree' principles to create a balance of climate-resilient native species appropriate to the local landscape. Avoid siting new woodland where there would be an adverse impact on the expansive views from higher ground.
• Ensure any new development is carefully located to respect traditional settlement forms, and is screened with existing or new native and climate-resilient planting where appropriate. Local vernacular styles/materials (cream cob/render, slate and local stone) should be incorporated into new buildings where possible, while incorporating sustainable design principles.

DCA 67 Witheridge and Rackenford Moor (PDF) [1MB]