Jasper’s Pightle

In 2020 the Trust secured its first major donation of land: 6.5 acres of rough grassland adjoining Blaxhall Great Common, known as ‘Jasper’s Pightle’ in memory its late former owner, Jasper Walters. (Our thanks go to John Pulham of Pulham & Co, solicitors, for handling the land transfer and for his advice and support.) The land has not been used for many years and has been invaded by bracken, which is damaging to biodiversity. We aim to create a valuable area of rare acid grassland, rich in wild flowers and studded with gorse and brambles, providing excellent nesting sites and cover for birds and mammals.

The Pightle contained a cluster of abandoned sheds and pig sties with asbestos roof panels. In 2021 the Trust raised £7,500 for the clearance of the asbestos and removal of dangerous structures, with generous support from East Suffolk Council’s Enabling Communities budget, the Adnams Community Trust, the Lord Belstead Charitable Settlement and the Scarfe Charitable Trust, as well as from many other friends and supporters, from the village and further afield. The remaining structures will be left in place and allowed to become overgrown, as they provide shelter and nesting sites for wildlife.  

In January 2022 BCOST adopted a Management Plan for Jasper’s Pightle (2022-26):

Already by the spring of 2023, after three winters of cutting and raking the bracken, the habitat of the Pightle is recovering to a rich and varied sward of grasses and wild flowers.