Broadstreet & Backside Commons (inc. Rydes Hill Common)

The diversity of these Commons is a direct reflection of the range of uses the land had in the years after the First World War.  Areas were clear felled for timber, ploughed for wheat and potatoes, used as traditional foraging, or left to be used for recreation by local people.

The present day landscape is a mixture of semi-mature birch and oak woodlands, and poor acidic grassland.

Habitat management on Backside Common has enhanced the balance between hazel coppice and blackthorn bushes to create enough viable habitat for nightingales.  A variety of ponds and connecting drainage ditches have also been created for wildlife.

The ecological communities on Broadstreet, Backside and Rydes Hill Commons can be defined under four general headings:

Woodlands
Typically self-sown, the woodlands are very much even-aged having developed from the decline in traditional common activities such as grazing, fuel collection and turf cutting.  They comprise of oak Quercus robur and silver birch Betula pendula, with a varying understorey of hawthorn Crataegus monogyna, blackthorn, holly Ilex aquilinum, bramble Rubus fruticosus and dog rose Rosa canina, reflecting the slow succession of these areas from rough grazed meadows.  In the wetter areas willow Salix spp. has become the dominant species, with local variations in some small areas.  The remaining species to note are ash Fraxinus excelsior, field maple Acer campestre, crab apple Malus sylvestris, hazel Corylus avellana and rowan Sorbus aucuparia.

Scrubland
The mixture of hawthorn, blackthorn and dog rose provides shelter, nesting, feeding and resting areas for small mammals and birds.

Grasslands
The areas of grassland on the Commons are predominantly wet due to the direct line of drainage from the Hogs Back.

Ponds
There are 9 ponds and a running water line. The running water extends along the eastern side of Broadstreet and the flow is managed by Guildford Borough Council.  The pond on Pinks Hill, Broadstreet was constructed as the swimming pool for Woodstreet Village School in the 1930s.

The Commons provide a valuable resource to local people. The large housing estate of Park Barn lies to one side, with Woodstreet Village, Broadstreet, and Fairlands Estate both nestling on the boundaries.

Boradstreet, Backside and Rydes Hill Commons are part of the Worplesdon Group of Commons managed by Surrey Wildlife Trust.

Access to the reserve is from the roadside off Oak Hill & Broad Street, Guildford.

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