Wednesday,
21st August, 2002 13:00 BST
Forest folk - Brian Ingram |
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| Brian
Ingram |
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Take a closer look at the people who live and work in the New Forest.
Rosie runs a local shop, Peter is a vicar, Brian's an agister and
Tony is a village copper. Here they tell us how they feel about the
area and describe their daily lives. |
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Brian
is one of 10 Agisters in the Forest. Together with the Verderers,
they work to protect the practice of Commoning.
He is also a Commoner himself, with ponies and cattle on the Forest.
"I was born in the Forest and my family have been tied up with
animals on the Forest and the local estates all their lives. I went
to a local school then worked for the Forestry Commission until I
went to do my National Service.
I was at Winchester, doing my National Service, when the Agister of
this area was at retiring age. A good friend of mine, a Commoner,
said he felt I ought to put in for it. He kept on at me, so I applied.
There were six of us and I got the job. When I got married we moved
up here (near Beaulieu). We've been here 30 odd years now.
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| Brian
outside his home |
We
have two children, both interested in Forest ways. My daughter works
at the oil refinery and my son is a thatcher.
All the Agisters are employed by the Verderers of the New Forest.
There is a body of 10 Agisters who look after the ponies, donkeys,
cattle and pigs on the Forest.
This is a job that's 24 hours a day. Each Agister has an area to
patrol, looking after stock. Although you can plan things, you perhaps
never carry them out because the phone will ring and you get called
to another job completely. If it's a sick or injured animal, like
a a road accident, you've got to go and see to it. You just do not
know what's going to happen.
Tourism plays a part in the Forest but how much more
can the Forest take? I'm not against tourism, because I like to
tour and go to other parts of the country, so why shouldn't they
come here, but how much do you accept? I would say that over the
past few years it's been getting to the point where it's enough.
One thing that makes me angry is the number of people
who come here to buy up their second homes, when we've got youngsters
that want to continue in Commoning and cannot afford to buy those
places.
This is a working forest and there's something about it. If you
go away for a holiday, once you come back over the cattle grid you
feel you are home.
It's a place where you can ride and you can walk. There's nothing
better than riding your horse on the Forest, particularly early
in the morning when there's not the people about. It's very nice
and peaceful."
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