Natural England

93. High Leicestershire

• Broad rolling ridges and varied, often steep-sided valleys.

• Well-treed character from hedgerows, hedgerow trees, copses, spinneys and small woodlands, the last often sited on ridges.

• Mixed farming, but with arable mainly on the ridge tops and the wide valley bottoms.

• Sparse settlement of small villages with little modern development.

• Ironstone and limestone churches and vernacular buildings but also abundant brick.

• Frequent and very prominent ridge and furrow and many deserted settlements.

• Green lanes, quiet country and a remote, rural, often empty character.

For further details on this character area and for an introduction to the region, please see the PDF documents in the box at the top right hand side of this page.