For over 125 years, we've been welcoming visitors to Burnham Beeches to enjoy the ancient woodland, wood pasture, coppice, ponds and streams, grassland, mire and heathland. Located in South Buckinghamshire and around 25 miles from London, Burnham Beeches was acquired by the City of London in 1880, in response to a threatened purchase by residential developers. There has probably been woodland on t
he site since the retreat of the last ice age, but today’s landscape was created by people. One of the three Scheduled Ancient Monuments on the site shows that the area was inhabited as early as the Iron Age. Today Burnham Beeches is characterised by a diverse mixture of ancient woodland, wood pasture, coppice, ponds and streams, grassland, mire and heathland. The sites most prominent features are the veteran Beech and Oak pollarded trees which provide a stable habitat for many rare and endangered deadwood species. The Beeches attracts around 500,000 visitors a year, who appreciate its tranquillity as well as its rich diversity of habitats and wildlife. Burnham Beeches has been a valuable recreation amenity for local people and visitors for over 125 years and is managed both as a public open space and also for conservation. The City of London owns and manages over 10,900 acres (4,411 hectares) of historic and natural open space, for public recreation and health. Our Open Spaces, most of which are charitable trusts, are run at no cost to the communities that they serve. They are funded principally by the City of London, together with grants, trading income, donations and sponsorship.
