Buckinghamshire village community group announces fundraising walk to save local woodland

Members of Finings Wood Community Group Committee in Finings Wood. (Photographer: Pauline Thomas. Image supplied by Finings Wood Community Group)

A Buckinghamshire village community group has announced a fundraising walk to help save Finings Wood and secure its future for Lane End village residents.

The ‘Walk the five Ends for Finings Wood’ sponsored walk on Sunday 23rd April 2023 will help raise funds to buy Finings Wood and secure its future for Lane End village residents.

Finings Wood, in Lane End near High Wycombe, is listed for sale. Local residents are concerned that the 63 acres of typical Chiltern woodland may be bought by a wood lotting company, resulting in a loss of nature biodiversity and access for local residents to the popular woodland. A group of residents have formed the Finings Wood Community Group in an ambitious plan to buy the wood and secure its future for the village.

Wood lotting companies break down the woodland up into small parcels of land, or ‘lots’, which are then sold to numerous different owners. This causes a detrimental effect for nature as the woodland cannot be looked after properly as a whole. Individual owners may create access tracks, fell trees, trample ground flora and erect temporary buildings. Woodlands deteriorate without proper conservation management, quickly resulting in loss of wildlife habitats. Local residents can also lose their walking routes as lots are fenced off. This has happened to woodlands in the neighbouring village of Stokenchurch.

Finings Wood has been a treasured local woodland for generations. Elderly local residents remember playing here as children, and now explore with their own grandchildren. The Facebook page Lane End, Finings Wood Group includes comments from different residents such as:

• ‘This woodland is synonymous with my childhood. Time spent building dens as a kid, jogging through it as a teenager and chatting through man of life’s challenges with my parents and friends.‘
• ‘As a Lane Ender, I feel so very lucky to have this ancient and unspoilt woodland on my doorstep.‘
• ‘I have visited these woods since I was a bump in my mum’s tummy! I’ve gone there when I’m sad, happy and all emotions in between.‘
• ‘From the moment we discovered the footpath into the wood, we knew Finings Wood was to be a special place. Four Labrador dog lives later, we have loved every walk, every season, whatever the weather.‘
• ‘I walked in these woods when I lived in Marlow. Now that I live in Lane End, I love to start my day with a walk before work. I’ve taken my children through them in the snow and they loved it. It’s a true asset to the area.‘

Finings Wood Community Group, supported in principle by the Chilterns Conservation Board, is pursuing funding through grant applications, private donations and fundraising events such as ‘Walk the five Ends’.

‘Walk the five Ends’ is a sponsored spring walk through the blossom and bluebells of Lane End (including Finings Wood), Cadmore End, Bolter End, Moor End and Wheeler End on Sunday 23rd April 2023. It is open to everyone and starts at 10.30am until 12.00pm, at Lane End Village Hall. The approx 11km walk should take around 2.5 hours (there’s also a 2k family walk). There will be free tea and biscuits at Lane End Village Hall, plus home-made cakes to buy and hot sandwiches from the BBQ in the village hall garden.

Sign up and sponsorship forms for the ‘Walk the five Ends’ sponsored walk are available from the website finingswood.org.uk or by emailing [email protected].

Alastair Broom, Finings Wood Community Group Chair, said: ‘We urge everyone to take part in Walk the five Ends for Finings Wood. The walk will go through beautiful countryside in the area at a glorious time of year.

Spring in the Chilterns is magnificent with blossom in the hedgerows and bluebells in the woodlands. We’re working hard to make it a wonderful day for walkers and we’re grateful to those who support us to reach our target to buy Finings Wood for the community.‘

Further information about the Finings Wood Community Group can be found on their website at finingswood.org.uk.

*Source of information : Press release from the Finings Wood Community Group.