Site of Special Scientific Interest | |
![]() Cuffley Brook with the moss covered remains of a parish boundary wall in the background | |
Location | Hertfordshire |
---|---|
Grid reference | TL280043 |
Interest | Biological |
Area | 223.6 hectares |
Notification | 1985 |
Location map | Magic Map |
Northaw Great Wood is a 223.6-hectare (553-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) near Cuffley in Hertfordshire, England. It covers Northaw Great Wood Country Park, which is managed by Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council, Well Wood, Justice Hill and Grimes Bottom. Part of the site is managed by Hertfordshire County Council as a schools' park. [1] [2] The country park is also a local nature reserve. [3] [4]
The wood was part of a large area of common land in the parish of Northaw which was used for grazing livestock and source of wood fuel. Closure of the canopy has led to the disappearance of open woodland birds such as nightingales and tree pipits, but the management plan for the wood aims to restore biodiversity. [5] The site has one of the county's most extensive areas of ancient hornbeam woodland, with other trees including oak and silver birch. Glades, streams and springs add to the biodiversity. [1]
There is access from the Ridgeway in Cuffley and facilities include a car park and toilets. [5]
Welwyn Hatfield is a local government district with borough status in the county of Hertfordshire, England. Its council is based in Welwyn Garden City. The borough borders Hertsmere, St Albans, North Hertfordshire, East Hertfordshire, Broxbourne, and the London Borough of Enfield.
Hornchurch Country Park is a 104.5-hectare park on the former site of Hornchurch Airfield, south of Hornchurch in the London Borough of Havering, east London.
Welwyn Hatfield is a constituency in Hertfordshire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 by Andrew Lewin, a member of the Labour Party.
Cuffley is a village in the civil parish of Northaw and Cuffley, in the Welwyn Hatfield district of south-east Hertfordshire located between Cheshunt and Potters Bar. It has a population of just over 4,000 people. It is part of Hertsmere parliamentary constituency since the boundary review in 2023. It used to be a part of Broxbourne parliamentary constituency.
Ingrebourne Valley is a local nature reserve (LNR) in Hornchurch in the London Borough of Havering. It is owned and managed by Havering Council, and has a visitor centre managed by the Essex Wildlife Trust. Most of it is in Hornchurch Country Park west of the River Ingrebourne, but there are also areas north and south of the park which are part of the LNR. It has a wide range of habitats, including woodland, grassland, the river and marshes. It is an important site for a range of species of plants, animals and birds, including great crested newts, slow worms, the harvest mouse and the water vole.
Northaw and Cuffley is a civil parish in the Welwyn Hatfield borough of Hertfordshire, England. Located approximately 13.5 miles (21.7 km) north of central London and adjacent to the Greater London boundary, it is a partly urbanised parish with large sections of open land. Northaw and Cuffley is a recent renaming of the ancient parish of Northaw, covering the settlements of Northaw and Cuffley. The local council is Northaw and Cuffley Parish Council.
Sherrardspark Wood is a 74.9 hectares biological site of Special Scientific Interest in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire. The site was notified in 1986 under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.
Stanmore Common is a 49.2-hectare public park, Local Nature Reserve and Site of Metropolitan Importance for Nature Conservation in Stanmore in the London Borough of Harrow in England. It is owned by Harrow Council and managed by the council with a local group. It was a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest, but was de-notified in the early 1990s.
Redwell Wood is a 52.8-hectare (130-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest near South Mimms in Hertfordshire. The local planning authority is split between Hertsmere Borough Council and Welwyn Hatfield District Council.
Mardley Heath is a 41.1 hectare Local Nature Reserve in Welwyn in Hertfordshire. It is owned by Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council and managed by the council together with the Friends of Mardley Heath.
Howe Dell is a 4 hectare Local Nature Reserve in Hatfield in Hertfordshire. The declaring authority is Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council. The site is woodland which runs along both sides of a stream with steep sides. The main trees are hornbeam, oak and beech. There is access from Honeysuckle Gardens.
Oxleys Wood is a 1.2 hectare Local Nature Reserve in Hatfield in Hertfordshire. The declaring authority is Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council. The wood floods in wet weather, particularly the northern part, which has a pond. Tree species include oak, ash, elm and willow, and they provide a habitat for insects which provide food for birds.
Stanborough Reedmarsh is a 3.3 hectare Local Nature Reserve in Welwyn Garden City in Hertfordshire. It is owned by Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council and managed by the Herts and Middlesex Wildlife Trust.
The Commons is 13.2 hectare Local Nature Reserve in Welwyn Garden City in Hertfordshire. It is owned and managed by Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council.
Danesbury Park is a 24.5-hectare (61-acre) public park and Local Nature Reserve in Welwyn in Hertfordshire. It is owned and managed by Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council.
Singlers Marsh is a 6.3 hectare Local Nature Reserve in Welwyn in Hertfordshire It is owned and managed by Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council.