Designations & Stewardship

Old Park & Chequers Wood is approximately 200 hectares in size. All of this land benefits from a conservation designation. Just over half of the site is classified as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), including a large part of Canterbury Golf Course. The water meadows in the north of the site are part of the Great Stour Local Wildlife Site, and three areas around the edge of the SSSI gained Local Wildlife Site status in June 2025. The area immediately west of the water meadows is classified as a Countryside Park (the Sturry Road Community Park). Most of the land between Chequers Wood and Fordwich is in the Fordwich Conservation Area and / or is farmland in environmental stewardship.

The Old Park & Chequers Wood SSSI

In 1969, 107 hectares of Old Park & Chequers Wood were designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) on account of the site’s unusual habitat mosaic of acid grassland, ancient woodland, and dense scrub. The designation was revised and renotified in 1985 under the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981, at which point Fordwich Pit was added to reflect the importance of the site in providing a rare example of Acheulian culture over half a million years ago. To view the SSSI citation, see: SSSI Citation.

Proposed Extension of the SSSI

Since the original designation of the site as a SSSI, it has become clear that the extent of the site which is valuable for rare species of flora/fauna and/or important archaeological artefacts is much broader than the boundaries of the SSSI itself.

The Friends of Old Park & Chequers Wood have been undertaking extensive ecological survey work across the site with a view to increasing the evidence base for the extension of the SSSI. An application for the extension of the SSSI has been submitted to Natural England (see map below), and results of the survey work have been sent in the form of ecological updates.

Local Wildlife Site

In June 2025, three important areas of good quality habitat around the SSSI were designated as a Local Wildlife Site by Kent Wildlife Trust (KWT).  These are shown in yellow on the map below.  The reasons for the designation can be viewed on the CA58 citation document.

The KWT press release celebrating the designation can be read here: https://www.kentwildlifetrust.org.uk/news/chequers-wood-win

Land-Ownership

Land ownership in Old Park & Chequers Wood and its buffer zones is currently divided between the Ministry of Defence / Defence Infrastructure Organisation (92.3 ha); Canterbury Golf Club (83.9 ha); E.H. Holdstock & Son (29.6 ha); Canterbury City Council (19.4 ha) and Taylor Wimpey (4.8 ha) – see map below.

The MoD is planning to sell its landholdings on the site in 2025. The Friends group has launched a campaign to ensure that all of the MoD’s land is acquired by Canterbury City Council and partners, and is designated solely for conservation and recreational purposes.

Asset of Community Value

In October 2025, a large part of the Ministry of Defence’s landholding was designated as an Asset of Community Value (ACV) by Canterbury City Council (see area in red on the map below). 
The application was submitted by the Friends of Old Park & Chequers Wood earlier in 2025, together with 200+ evidence statements by organisations and individuals about the value of the site to local people for recreational and educational purposes. The process of collecting the evidence statements brought to light many fascinating personal recollections of using the land over several decades. 
ACV status will enable the Friends of Old Park & Chequers Wood to enact the Community Right to Bid when the land is put on the open market, giving the group a period of six months to determine whether the finances can be raised to purchase the site.