Natural environment

We all think we know what a forest is, but a ‘forest’ historically was a legal term meaning land preserved for a special purpose. Sherwood Forest’s first special purpose was as a Royal Hunting Ground, just after the Norman invasion.

Sherwood Forest has always been a rich resource for local people, providing timber for buildings and industry, game to eat or for sport, employment in the mills and mines and it’s a great natural resource to enjoy. There have been many struggles about who owns these resources and who has access to them and how they should be used.

This unit will consider:

What is a forest?
How has Sherwood Forest changed over time and why?
What was it like to live or work in the Sherwood Forest area through the Century of Change?
What is a forest for?