New Forest National Park

The New Forest is an area of southern England within southwest Hampshire and extending into southeast Wiltshire and towards east Dorset. This area of land was once a royal hunting ground for King William I and his noblemen. With a large proportion of the forest being Crown land, access to the greater part of it is open and free. It is still also actively managed as a working forest and there are still privileges known as 'rights of common' for people who occupy land and property in the area, which includes the right to graze stock on the Open Forest. At present, over 300 commoners exercise this particular right and graze more than 6,000 ponies, cattle and donkeys. This helps to preserve the look of the Forest and contributes greatly to its amenity and accessibility.