Forestry Commission - News - ground-breaking agreement benefits dalkeith communities

A ground-breaking new partnership between Forestry Commission Scotland and Newbattle Abbey College, Dalkeith, will see the college's woodlands managed for the benefit of the local community, visitors and students.

Under a new concordat, the Commission is to lease the historical woodlands from the college and help maximise the opportunities for more people to enjoy them for recreation and learning.

The concordat is part of the Commission's drive to bring the benefits of well managed woodlands to more people living in urban areas under its Woods In & Around Towns (WIAT) initiative. From here on the woodlands will be regenerated and opened up for better access, with new footpaths built to encourage more people into woods for peace and quiet, exercise or learning.

The partnership has received help from a legacy left by the late Mary Emily Scott, who lived in the Liberton area of Edinburgh and wanted to ensure that some of her will went to the management of a mature woodland.

Announcing the new concordat at a visit to Newbattle Abbey College, Rhona Brankin, Scottish Forestry Minister, said:

"From today, Forestry Commission Scotland foresters and wardens will be working closely with the college to deliver the many benefits these magnificent woodlands can offer. What is happening at Newbattle is a shining example of how the Commission is using local woodlands to enrich the lives of people who live in the towns and cities of Scotland.

"The concordat is also a perfect opportunity to allow the woodlands to be used as a rich curricular resource for college students and pupils from local schools.

"I congratulate Newbattle Abbey College and Forestry Commission Scotland on this new joint working, which will help to promote and care for the woodlands in such an historic landscape."

Two new woodland wardens from the Commission have been especially recruited and are to be based at the college. They will take forward the management of the woods and will create new links with local schools.

Ann Southwood, Principal of Newbattle Abbey College, added:

"This partnership between Newbattle Abbey College and Forestry Commission Scotland marks the first phase of a 15-year strategy (2006 - 2021) for the development of the college and its entire 50-hectare (125-acre) estate.

"We are delighted to welcome the Commission to Newbattle, and we're excited about the opportunity to make the woodlands more accessible to the local community as well as developing aspects of the college curriculum around the partnership."

Dr Hugh Insley, Chief Executive of Forest Enterprise Scotland (the Commission's forest management agency) highlighted that the ground-breaking agreement was part of a wider strategy to use the national forest estate to boost public benefits:

"Most of the national forest estate is located in areas generally distant from where people live. What we are doing now is to improve the public benefits derived from woodlands, but also in areas closer to urban people. One way open to the Commission to achieve this is to buy or lease new land into the national forest estate and manage it for the good of the community. The concordat for Newbattle is pioneering this approach."

Notes to editors:

Pictures are available from the Forestry Commission's Picture Library - call Neill Campbell on 0131 314 6411.
Newbattle is set in breathtaking parkland on the outskirts of Edinburgh. Originally a 12th-century Cistercian abbey, it was established as a college in 1937. The historic, mainly 16th-century building and peaceful surroundings make Newbattle a unique place to learn and study within an intimate and friendly environment.
There is a growing awareness that woods in highly populated areas provide much more than just recreation opportunities - they contribute to people's well-being, stimulate new economic activity and investment, and benefit the environment. For this reason, Scottish Ministers instructed Forestry Commission Scotland to find ways of moving woodland expansion and forestry activity closer to where the people of Scotland live and work. This resulted in the Woods In & Around Towns (WIAT) initiative.

Media enquiries:

Forestry Commission Scotland and Rhona Brankin - Steve Williams, 0131 314 6508 or 07771 730 509.
Newbattle Abbey College - Maggie Wright 0131 446 0483 or 07801710360; Maggie@mwa-scotland.com.