Friends of Mortimer Forest

Woodlands for Wildlife & Well-being

Mortimer Forest provides a haven of peace and tranquillity. This deeply rural area, on the borders of Herefordshire and Shropshire offers opportunities for a diverse range of physical activities and recreation. It is popular for walking, with waymarked trails for those of all abilities, and vast swathes of forest in which to escape the hustle and bustle of daily life and immerse one’s self in the natural world.

Wellbeing is a positive physical, social and mental state. Increasingly, research on the impacts of the environment on health, suggests that contact with nature can be beneficial in terms of physical, social and mental health. Researchers have found that people living closer to green spaces are more physically active and healthier. 

The forest is abundant with wildlife and the charity is working with our members to help protect and enjoy the beautiful woodland and biodiversity within it. We are hosting events, walks talks and conservation activities. Visit our events page to see our upcoming event. 

The ancient wooded hills and wild forests of North Herefordshire and South Shropshire are key distinctive features of this timeless landscape – much of it unchanged since our ancestors first settled the borderlands between the Severn Valley and the Welsh Mountains.

The Mortimer Forest, named after the most powerful ruling family in the Marches in medieval times, is set high above the Teme Valley and is a much cherished element of these wild Marcher lands where man and nature co-exist in a delicate balance which requires careful and tactful oversight to enable us to bequeath this treasure to future generations. Mortimer Forest contains a multitude of rare and sometimes unique species of flora and fauna which only careful conservation will both protect and conserve.

The Friends of Mortimer Forest have come together as a local community charity to sensitively enhance and care for for these and other nearby Woodlands so that we and our successors can continue to interact with, and delight in, this remarkable part of the Marches and the natural world in a benign way, for the benefit of all.

I wish the Friends of Mortimer Forest and all those who enjoy the Forest very well indeed. May the Friends of Mortimer Forest enhance and benefit this Natural Treasure for us all.

Councillor Sebastian Bowen
Chairman of Herefordshire Council
May 2021

Please support our work

Join the Friends of Mortimer Forest and help us maintain this wonderful forest for the next generation.

The Friends of Mortimer Forest is a registered charity supported entirely by its own fund raising activities, awards from grant giving bodies and importantly public and private donations.

All monies raised are used to deliver the aims and objectives of the Trust as set out above and where appropriate to support other charitable organisations in attaining similar aims.

If you wish to donate you can find us on Just Giving, or click the purple Just Giving link in the website footnote.