Cache placed with the kind permission of the Woodland Trust
The wood was acquired by the Woodland Trust in 26 May 1987 from the estate of neighbouring Hollins farm. The farmer, Mr G Braithwaite started negotiations, but died before they were completed. Funding for the acquisition was given in the form of grant aid from: Countryside Commission, Burnley Borough Council, Borough of Pendle, and the Council for the Protection for Rural England.
The wood was part of a farm, and the central area had been clear felled in the 1960's. At acquisition there was no official public access, it was not securely fenced and was undergrazed by sheep. On acquisition the whole site was fenced, and a double fence put in to define the new public and management access from Ightenhill Park Lane.
Hagg Wood is in a rural area, but only a short distance from the old, densely populated, industrial Lancashire towns of Burnley and Padiham and linked to these by a single lane. The wood is not connected to any other woodland, and is surrounded by semi-improved grassland, grazed mainly by sheep, on all sides except for the short stretch of boundary where it meets the River Calder at the bottom of the valley. The surrounding landscape is generally open grassland, with hills and open moorland further north. There is not much woodland in this part of Lancashire, particularly ancient semi-natural woodland. Woods that have survived tend to be 'clough' woods, located in steep sided valleys and so Hagg Wood is unusual in this respect in that is in on relatively flat land.
The wood is 14.5 acre (5.88ha) wood is composed mainly of native broadleaved trees. The large central part of the wood was clear felled in the 1960's, and has since naturally regenerated predominantly with birch, with oak, rowan, holly and sycamore also in the mix. Around this central block is a fringe of older mature broadleaves, composed mainly of beech, oak, sycamore, but also with wet flushes of alder and scrub willows, and open bracken dominated glade. The final area of the wood is almost a separate piece on the far eastern end, which a wet bank sloping increasingly steeply down to the River Calder. This land is wet, being eroded from the base by the river, and consequently it frequently subsides and slumps. Most of the mature trees were clear felled for safety reasons in 1989, and then replanted with mixed native broadleaves the same year. The plants in the wood are species common to wood or woodland edges, but very varied. Some indicate ancient woodland such as bluebell, wood anemone, honeysuckle, enchanter's nightshade, and there are also meadowsweet, giant horsetail, cuckoo pint and various ferns. Birds spotted in the wood or adjacent river include jay, sparrow hawk, little owl and kingfisher. Animals regularly seen in the wood include roe deer, and grey squirrels are present.
There is good public access to the eastern end of the wood from Ightenhill Park Lane and it is spossible to complete a circualr walk around the wood Limited parking is available in the lane. The wood is well walked by local people throughout the year, and very popular