Fieldwork Report of Woodland Evaluation at Jones Hill Wood, Buckinghamshire

The Site had already been evaluated by AWH investigation through integrated survey comprising desk-based assessment, a woodland (arboricultural and botanical) survey, a topographic survey and test pit excavation and this formed Phase 1 of the Woodland Evaluation work. The Phase 1 work identified evidence of a woodland bank forming the western edge of the woodland. Further evaluation as part of Phase 2 works was not possible until after tree clearance and a single 20m x 2m trench across the bank was excavated. This trench has provided a relatively small excavation sample area of the Site and was restricted to targeting on a single feature identified in the Phase 1 evaluation work. The results have recorded a previously unknown ditch associated with the woodland bank, marking the western extent of the Jones Hill Wood. The results have not provided a definitive date for the boundary but indicate a date of construction likely no earlier than the later part of the medieval period, although an earlier post-medieval date is also possible. There was no evidence for earlier land used identified. The construction of a woodland boundary can be understood to be a typical management practice associated with medieval or later woods, but the age of the boundary does not necessarily imply an age for the woodland as a whole.