Woodland Workshop –
Our People
Woodland Workshop:
Our People
The People Supporting the Woodland Workshop
The creation of Plashett Community Workshop in Sussex has brought together the various people involved in Plashett Wood.
The owners of Plashett Wood (The IV Askew Charitable Trust) have financially supported the building of the forestry workshop and allowed it to be built on their land.
The managers of Plashett Estate, of which Plashett Wood is part of, (local land agents Strutt and Parker) have been supportive in the planning process and have been actively involved in the preparation of the site of the forestry workshop.
The woodland manager of Plashett Wood for the last 33 years, James Noble, has been instrumental in bringing the various parties together as well as being one of the directors of the Community Interest Company, Plashett Community Workshop.
The forester who has carried out all the work in the woodland for the last 29 years will be milling up the material used in making the workshop on his sawmill situated in the wood. He will also be able to carry out work in the wood in a very sensitive way, as the small amounts of material required for the workshop and subsequent courses will allow a ‘little and often’ approach to silvicultural operations. This is generally seen as the best way to manage a woodland.
Mark d’Ascoli, a skilled woodworker who has a workshop on the edge of the wood will be instrumental in running the courses that will be carried out in the workshop. Mark has been using timber sourced from Plashett Wood for many years. Mark is one of the directors of the Community Interest Company.
Community Involvement
It is intended that the creation of Plashett Community Workshop and the activities that it carries out will involve the local community on the estate as well as local people who generally do not have access to Plashett Wood. This will be through activities in the workshop and guided walks in the woodland.
The building of the workshop and running of courses from it once it has been built will involve a large number of crafts people, many of whom are local to the area.