The Character of the Landscape
Ten key character areas were identified within the landscape of the river Wensum, following an assessment process used by the Countryside Commission in Warwickshire (‘Assessment and Conservation of Landscape Character - The Warwickshire Landscape Project’, 1991). These areas are:
Upstream of Guist, much of the Wensum headwaters and its main tributaries are intensively farmed. The valley form is a well-defined shallow dish, but arable cultivation on the side slopes and valley bottom mask the break of slope between the sides and floor. The river is often reduced to a mere canalised ditch and has little impact on the character of the wider landscape. These areas tend to be bland in appearance; open landscapes with few features.
Generally the headwaters are unsettled with the notable exception of East Rudham. Here the pasture land, trees and hedges associated with the village on the valley floor provide a more diverse, intimate enclosed landscape that is visually interesting.
Historic parkland, most notably Raynham, Sennowe, Bylaugh, Weston Longville, Morton and Taverham are all landscapes which were designed to provide a pleasing environment for the country house owner.
The sites comprise a mix of parkland, parkland trees and peripheral planting belts. In some cases, arable fields and large lakes are included within the site boundary, and other features such as boundary walls, lodges and other ancillary buildings have a significant contribution to the appearance of the land outside the park.
Whilst these areas may draw on the character of the surrounding countryside, they tend to produce an individual effect, which differs from the prevailing landscape type.
For limited sections along the Wensum Valley, notably at Lenwade and Fakenham, sections of the valley floor and lower sides are subject to intensive industrial use. In these areas the land is covered, almost totally, by hard development, which differs from the appearance of the active mineral workings on the valley floor.
For the most part these areas are visually well-contained, although noise, dust and other pollutants generated by these works may have a wider influence on the valley.
Golf courses require large areas of land and can have a significant impact on the appearance of the surrounding countryside. In some cases, to make a challenging course, earth moving may take place on a large scale together with the construction of bunkers, greens and water bodies. The playing area is set down to mown grass, and people can be seen to be continually moving through the countryside during opening time.
The appearance of the golf courses at Taverham and Costessey differs markedly from the character of the prevailing landscape, being more manicured and suburban in appearance than the farmed countryside.
These areas comprise large-scale, gently rolling, intensively farmed plateau lands. The landscape is open, with long views, which often extend to the skyline. Large blocks of woodland and linear shelterbelts occur intermittently on the plateau, but they do not significantly enclose the landscape.
Broadleaf, coniferous and mixed plantings all occur. The woodland blocks tend to have straight boundaries and are sited irrespective of the contours. As a consequence these blocks, particularly where they are stands of pure conifers, often sit uncomfortably in the landscape.
The field size is large, some hedgerows exist but they do little to effectively reduce the scale of the landscape, although the remaining hedgerow oaks can punctuate the skyline. Notable features on this upland area are the small wooded pits, formerly dug for marl, which add visual interest to the plateau.
Isolated farms with their associated buildings are found on this upland area but apart from these, settlement is scarce and the minor roads are widely spaced. The area has a strong rural character.
Intensive residential development occurs in the valley, notably at Fakenham, Taverham, Drayton, Costessey and Hellesdon. All of these areas have a more urban character than the rest of the area.
Landscape features, for example remnant blocks of woodland, urban parks and garden trees and the topography itself add interest to the appearance of these areas.
South-east of Lenwade, the sandy soils which overlay the chalk give rise to a rolling well-wooded landscape of dramatic quality. The plateau lands are no longer as distinct from the valley sides, but the land tends to roll around in a series of low hills, with the River Wensum running almost incidentally along one of the troughs, which tend to be oriented in a north-west to south-east direction.
The land is well-wooded, with broadleaf, coniferous and mixed woodland, both on the side slopes and hill tops. These woods are generally sited sympathetically to the contours. The woodland blocks are large in size, as are the fields. Hedges are few in this area, although some hedgerow trees remain.
These elements make up an open landscape, large in scale, with long views off the roadsides. Little settlement exists in this area and although it lies close to the City of Norwich, it has a strong rural character.
These areas comprise gently sloping plateau lands, predominantly in arable cultivation, but well planted with hedges and trees. In places, where the valley is shallower, the boundary between the top and the sides merge, and these attractive intimate landscapes flow right down to the valley floor.
It is a landscape of many layers, the hedgerows, hedgerow trees and small woods all adding volume to the cultivated ground. Views are often restricted both by the vegetation and by the hedgebanks, which border the narrow lanes.
Settlement is scattered. The individual farms and small clusters of dwellings punctuate the scene pictorially giving a landscape of surprise and delight.
These landscapes are small in scale, field size is small and the irregular slopes and sandy outcrops sometimes contain remnants of former heath. Whilst essentially a cultivated area, it is more visually diverse and richer in appearance than the more intensively farmed boulder clay plateau lands.
A wide lush tranquil pastoral landscape, which winds its way gently down towards Norwich. Grazing animals forage in the meadows. The meadows are typically divided by dykes, which create an open landscape where long views generally can be seen along the valley floor.
In certain sections, the valley bottom is more enclosed; blocks of woodland periodically curtail the view and the pasture is interspersed with scattered scrub and pollarded willows occur along the river bank.
Reed beds can be seen along the River Wensum at Guist, in a more fragmented pattern between Sculthorpe Mill and Fakenham, and at Whitwell Common, adjoining the Blackwater. These give a flavour of how much of the valley would have appeared, before it was actively drained and the meadow land was much wetter.
Bridges cross the rivers at intervals, and these together with the occasional water mills comprise the main structures in the valley bottom.
These areas comprise a well-defined sloping landform of medium scale. The fields are mainly cultivated, small to medium in size and enclosed by well-grown hedgerows and hedgerow trees. These, together with the abundant small copses, make up an intimate and attractive landscape of pictorial quality.
Scattered settlement punctuates the scene with small villages nestling on the lower slopes close to the valley floor. Narrow lanes run along the top of the valley sides, and in places cut up through the slopes, the eye being drawn through the landscape following the hedgelines up the valley to the skyline.
This page was last updated on 6th July 2010. Wensum Valley Trust Registered Charity Number 1120524
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