About

Setmurthy Wood is a 158ha forest located near Cockermouth, on the edge of the Lake District National Park. Originally planted between 1928 and 1938, it now contains a mix of conifer and broadleaf species and a diverse age structure. The forest plays an important role in timber production, biodiversity, and recreation. This plan sets out how Setmurthy will be managed over the next 35 years, with detailed proposals for the first 10 years.

Objectives

Economic

• Sustainably produce high-quality timber, primarily conifers.
• Diversify commercial species to include Douglas fir, Scots pine, and larch.
• Maintain a phased felling and restocking programme to ensure long-term productivity.

Environmental

• Enhance semi-natural features, especially around watercourses and existing native woodland.
• Increase species diversity and create wind firm coupe designs.
• Improve the landscape by breaking up the skyline ridge with open space and native species.
• Support biodiversity through habitat corridors and minimum intervention areas.

Social

• Provide facilities for recreation such as walking and cycling.
• Engage with local communities and user groups to balance recreation and conservation.
• Retain key landscape features for visual appeal and visitor experience.

What We’ll Do

Over the next decade, we will manage Setmurthy Wood through a carefully phased programme of felling and thinning to maintain its structural diversity and reduce the risk of windthrow. Mature stands will be harvested and restocked with a mix of species suited to the site, ensuring that commercial conifers remain a core part of the forest while introducing more Douglas fir, Scots pine, and native broadleaves to enhance resilience and biodiversity.

Alongside timber production, we will create opportunities to improve habitats by widening rides, protecting watercourses, and expanding areas of semi-natural woodland. The skyline ridge will be redesigned to include open spaces and varied planting, breaking up the straight edge of spruce and improving the internal and external landscape.

Some areas will be managed under continuous cover principles, gradually replacing conifer overstorey with native species while maintaining woodland shelter. We will also retain selected mature stands for their landscape and wildlife value and set aside small zones for minimum intervention to improve value for biodiversity. Throughout this process, we will continue to engage with local communities and user groups, balancing recreation with conservation and ensuring Setmurthy remains a welcoming and sustainable forest for future generations.

For more detailed information, please refer to the full plan below.