| NEW FOREST
COMMONERS Forest editor, Anita Sibley,
met New Forest Commoners
Bob and Janette Pearce to
explore the ancient tradition
of commoning and the
ownership of the famous
New Forest Ponies.  So are the ponies really
wild? The 3,500 beautiful ponies
that you see wandering freely
over the Forest all belong to
someone. The ponies are
described as the “architects of
the forest” and without them
the area would soon become
overgrown and untidy. The New Forest pony is today as much in demand as a
riding pony and is renowned
for its sure-footedness and ability to carry weight.
A 14-hand pony (a hand is four inches), can carry a stone for every hand. It seems hard
to imagine that a small pony
could carry a 14 stone man
comfortably. Commoners own the Ponies  Every New Forest pony is
owned by a commoner and
each pony is marked with
an individual brand before
being left to wander the open
forest. Approximately 400
commoners currently exercise
the right of pasture, which
allows them to graze stock on
the open forest. Carrying on the Tradition Janette and Bob Pearce have
lived in or around the Forest
all their lives and now have a
Commoners Dwelling close
to Lyndhurst. Bob originally
ran 35 cattle running on
his family’s smallholding in
Minstead and although his
cattle were unaffected by the
foot and mouth outbreak in
2001, the restrictions imposed
made it almost impossible to
make a living. However, the price of land
and housing in the New
Forest area made Bob’s
desire to carry on commoning
a difficult task. Fortunately
Bob and his wife Janette who
started commoning in 1983
heard of a scheme called the
Commoners Housing Trust
and applied for permission
to build a house under the
rules of the scheme on some
grazing land they’d purchased
four years earlier. To qualify
for the scheme you must
own five ponies and have
been ‘commoning’ for ten
years. It was not an easy
purchase and for over a year
Janette and Bob and family
lived in cramped conditions
in a mobile home before
moving into their Commoners’
Dwelling which they now
lease from the Trust. The ups and downs of
Commoning They now own a herd of
ponies that wander within
a three mile radius of their | smallholding. Each pony is
known fondly by name and
carries their ‘JP’ brand. Their
tails are styled in a certain way
to show that their dues have
been paid to the Verderers. (see below)
The ponies can often been seen
congregating around the gate
waiting to be let in for an extra feed of hay to supplement
their Forest diet. Bob and Janette horse ride,
walk and cycle for hours in
remote parts of the Forest to
check on their ponies. During
the foot and mouth crisis
they only lost one pony in the three years - that they eventually found fit and well.
It had unusually moved to another part of the forest where there were richer pickings! The Verderers administer
the New Forest Commoning
System and not only collect
the £18 per pony annual fee
for roaming the Forest, but
also employ The Agisters. An
Agister is “on call” day and
night and responsible for the
welfare of every commonable
animal in his part of the forest.
Janette and Bob follow
part-time occupations to
supplement their income
so that they can continue
to live the life they love as
commoners in the Forest. Dangers Visitiors are urged to treat
the ponies with caution and
to give them a wide berth.
Feeding the ponies causes
jealousy amongst the herd,
upsets the natural pecking
order, and may cause them
to kick and bite which could
possibly result in someone
getting injured if they got too
close. Even experienced horse
people get hurt and once
Janette ended up in hospital
for ten days with cracked ribs,
stitches and a punctured lung.
These injuries were caused
by a four-month-old foal who
she was trying to give some
medicine to. Well meaning people often
dump their grass cuttings in
the Forest for the ponies to
eat. Grass cuttings if eaten
can cause a slow and painful
death. Yew cuttings are highly
toxic and can kill a healthy
pony within two minutes.
One pony ended up overnight
in a neighbour’s swimming
pool. The neighbour heard a
splash and found the pony caught in the pool cover.
It had spent the night up to its
neck in water and tangled in
the cover. It was eventually
rescued by the Agister and
delivered home shivering and
totally bedraggled. It was
made a nice deep bed in a
stable and then slept and
snored for five hours! A pint of milk and a pony A few years ago, Janette and
Bob were heartbreakingly
paid just five pounds for three foals.
Today the profile of the New
Forest pony has been raised
and they have recently sold a
pony for the realistic sum of
£250. As well as the Beaulieu
Road Sales, Janette has sold
ponies in the village shop and
on the internet. Tourism and commoning The New Forest tourist
industry owes its success
to the commoners and their
stock. Commoners have
an inbuilt passion for both
the Forest and their animals.
Without them the Forest
would look very different. | WHO’S WHO IN THE FOREST? THE NEW FOREST NATIONAL
PARK AUTHORITY National Park status is the highest
level of countryside designation,
putting the New Forest in the premier
league of landscapes in Britain and
around the world. National Park
Status recognises what people who
live in, work in, or visit the Forest have
known for years – that it’s a special
place. THE VERDERERS  The Ancient Verderers Court dates
from Norman times and today is one
of Britain’s oldest judicial courts.
Today the Verderers sit in public six
times a year and administer the New
Forest’s Commoning system. AGISTERS  Five official Agisters deal with the
daily management of over 5,000
ponies and cattle which roam wild
on 45,000 acres of open forest. An
Agister is on call day and night and
responsible for the welfare of every
commonable animal in his part of
the forest. The Agisters report to the
Verderers. COMMONERS Every New Forest pony is owned by a
commoner and each pony is marked
with an individual brand before being
left to wander the open forest. To
become a commoner you must own or
rent a property or plot of land to which
privileges known as rights of common
are attached. The right of pasture,
currently exercised by approximately
400 commoners, allows them to graze
stock (ponies, cattle and donkeys) on
the open forest. KEEPERS Employed by the Forestry
Commission on behalf of the Crown,
keepers undertake a range of
wildlife, conservation and recreation
duties, including managing the
deer population. Each of the 12
keepers has a detailed knowledge of
a particular area. RANGERS The Forestry Commission ranger
service runs an extensive programme
of events ranging from storytelling to
deer watching. It also staffs a New
Forest information unit at Bolderwood
which gives forest information, put on slide shows and leads guided walks for
local groups, schools and colleges.
VOLUNTEER RANGERS Volunteer rangers play an integral
role in helping to conserve wildlife
and habitats while enhancing visitor
enjoyment by assisting visitors
in the New Forest and providing
valuable support to our ranger and
keeper teams. Volunteer rangers are
recruited annually and are expected to
be able to commit to at least two duty
days a month. |
