SDO16415 - Land North-East of Blandford Forum, Dorset. Archaeological Evaluation

An archaeological evaluation was commissioned by Lewis Wyatt (Construction) Ltd- Wyatt Homes, the West Pimperne Pool Trust, Mr C Coats and Mr T Coats (the clients) on 35ha of land proposed for residential development. The evaluation was part of a programme of works carried out in relation to the planning application. 21 trenches were excavated in line with the results of a previous geophysical survey and some random sampling. A small number of archaeological features were found mainly in the eastern part of the site and the results of the geophysical survey were confirmed in indicating a low potential for archaeological remains. Of most interest were a pair of pits in Trench 8 due to the recovery of a good quantity of Middle Neolithic decorated Peterborough Ware pottery. The only other evidence of note was a ditch found in Trenches 2 and 3 dating to the Iron Age which may have been an indication of a field boundary system.