The Langdyke Countryside Trust has big plans to buy and conserve Torpel Manor Field near Helpston. Jayne Lillywhite visited the site to find out more…
At first glance Torpel Manor Field looks unexceptional. A large pasture with plenty of stinging nettles and thistles, there is a pile of scrap wood near the gate, some shabby-looking stables in one corner and a dirty great electricity pylon right in the middle. Yet despite its apparent ordinariness, it is very pretty.
In late May, when I visited, a carpet of shiny brilliant yellow buttercups was interspersed with foamy patches of lacy cow parsley. The hawthorns ringing the field were almost dripping with creamy white flowers. Swallows chattered and swooped overhead, skylarks were warbling and bees buzzed busily around the weedy margins.
This untidy beauty hides the field’s long history and local importance. Richard Astle, of the Landyke Countryside Trust, a local trust which wants to purchase and conserve the field, showed me round.
“We don’t really know what Torpel Manor looked like, but it was probably some sort of fortified manor house,” explains Richard. “We know that it stood in the southern part of the field, and in the 12th century all this was a deer park.”
He gestures widely to the surrounding arable landscape. It was clear to me that there had been buildings here as I scrambled up and down the earth banks.
“This site is a Scheduled Monument,” Richard continued, “which means that it’s considered nationally important and is protected under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Areas Act. There is even a seasonal pond – probably the remnants of an old moat.”
Flora and fauna
The Langdyke Countryside Trust is interested in Torpel Manor Field for its local heritage value, and also for its wildlife. As a designated County Wildlife Site, the area is also recognised for its rich variety of plants, insects and birds.
“We’ve already surveyed the site and found lots of interesting plants characteristic of limestone grassland, such as black knapweed, bird’s-foot trefoil and salad burnet,” says Richard. “The Trust has its own flock of rare breed Hebridean sheep that we use to graze our other nature reserve, up the road at Swaddywell. We’ll bring the sheep here so they can eat the scrubby bushes and coarse grass, which will mean the wildflowers can flourish. Who knows what might grow here? We haven’t had a chance to assess the insect life yet, but we’re sure we’ll find plenty of exciting species.”
Big plans for the site
As Richard showed me where the swallows were nesting in the stables, he set out the Trust’s ambitious aims. “If we manage to raise enough money to acquire this important site, we want to convert these stables in to outdoor classrooms and exhibition rooms. They’d be ideal for schoolchildren and general visitors. We’re also thinking about trying to organise some ‘Time Team’ style excavations, outdoor drama on the main mound, community games and picnics and maybe even revive the mediaeval Torpel Fair that was held at the end of August throughout the 12th and 13th centuries.”
Before my short visited ended, I stood for a few minutes under a majestic old ash tree and tried to image Torpel Manor Field in a few years time; I couldn’t help but feel excited, too. If the Trust raises the money to buy this site, it will become a remarkable place for locals and visitors to enjoy. Torpel Manor Field really is an amazing asset right on our doorstep.
Torpel Manor Field and Swaddywell appeal
The Langdyke Countryside Trust must raise £120,000 before 1 March 2009 to secure the purchase of Torpel Manor and the meadow at Swaddywell Pit, which has been managed by the Trust for wildlife and local people since 2003. Although they hope to raise the bulk of the costs from grant-making organisations, the Trust still needs to raise as much money as possible from the local community.
If you’d like to help the Langdyke Countryside Trust (www.langdyke.org.uk) purchase these valuable sites for the benefit of people and wildlife, send your donation cheque, made payable to the Langdyke Countryside Trust Appeal, to Jennifer Britton, 8 Heath Road, Helpston, Peterborough, PE6 7EG. Please include an SAE for your receipt. If enough money is not raised to purchase the sites, donations will be returned.