Shropshire villagers safeguard future of historic hill – by buying it for £240,000

Access to the hill, which hosts many popular walking routes, has been under threat in recent months after its private owner prevented public access

Pontesford Hill, near Shrewsbury: the site of a Saxon battle (Alamy)

The Shropshire village of Pontesford has staged a remarkable show of people power by raising more than £240,000 to buy their local hill – rescuing a major historic landmark from potentially being closed off to the public.

It might not have the most exciting name on the map – being known locally as simply “The Hill” – but villagers have a deep affinity with the peak at Pontesford, which lies to the south-west of Shrewsbury at one end of the county’s famous Stiperstones ridge.

Access to the conifer-covered hill, which hosts many popular walking routes, has been under threat in recent months after its private owner challenged the public’s freedom to roam over the peak.

Once home to an Iron Age fort, of which the earthworks remain, the Hill is one half of the twin peaks of Pontesford and Earls Court, known collectively as the Sleeping Dragon because of the shape they resemble, and sits in a designated Area of Outstanding Beauty.

The owner, developer Simon Hutchen, put the site up for sale after his own plans for the area were blocked by the local council. He had wanted to build an outdoor amphitheatre, a replica working Iron Age camp and a green burial ground on the hill.

As soon as Mr Hutchen put the site up for sale, the local community rallied round to raise money to buy it back.

Numerous fundraising events were held locally, including a sponsored six-mile walk by 800 children and staff from nearby schools, while a nine-year-old girl, Ffion Korsak, threw a birthday party and asked her friends to donate to the cause rather than buying her presents.

The local scouts, guides and Rotary clubs played their part in raising the total while donations also came from across the country.

In all, more than 1,000 donations were received totalling £241,000 – of which £207,500 will be spent on the hill’s 940-year lease and the remainder will go to managing and maintaining the hill.

“It’s been absolutely phenomenal,” said Mike Mortimer, chairman of the Friends of Pontesford Hill. “To have raised this much money in just five months demonstrates how deeply people care about their local landscape. But we still need to raise another £24,000 to reach our target of £265,000,” he added. This was the community’s second attempt to buy the hill, which the Forestry Commission put up for sale in 2010, after being outbid by Mr Hutchen the first time.

“We have been working on this since 2010 and we have had our setbacks. Now we have finally achieved it we are delighted for the whole of Shropshire,” said John Hughes, from Shropshire Wildlife Trust.

Pontesford and Earls Court hills were the site of a Saxon battle that gave rise to the legend of the “golden arrow”. One of the warring Saxon kings reputedly shot an arrow made of solid gold and it got lost in the battle. According to the legend, whoever finds the arrow is assured of great wealth and fortune. Perhaps that explains a little more about the price the villagers were willing to pay.