The Malvern Hills Conservators are a

body corporate In law, a legal person is any person or 'thing' (less ambiguously, any legal entity) that can do the things a human person is usually able to do in law – such as enter into contracts, sue and be sued, own property, and so on. The reason for ...

responsible for the care and management of the

Malvern Hills The Malvern Hills are in the English counties of Worcestershire, Herefordshire and a small area of northern Gloucestershire, dominating the surrounding countryside and the towns and villages of the district of Malvern. The highest summit affo ...

and Commons. They were established in 1884 and are governed by five

Acts of Parliament Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of parliament ...

, the Malvern Hills Acts 1884, 1909, 1924, 1930 and

1995 File:1995 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: O.J. Simpson is O. J. Simpson murder case, acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman from the 1994, year prior in "The Trial of the Century" in the United States; The ...

. They became a

registered charity A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definition of a ch ...

in 1984 and since April 2017 use the working name of the Malvern Hills Trust.

Membership

The

Conservators In certain areas of England, Conservators are statutory bodies which manage areas of countryside for the use of the public. Establishment, Role and Powers Conservators are bodies corporate generally established, and granted their powers, by a ...

are a body of twenty-nine voluntary members, which meet as the Board four times a year; three Board Committees meet more regularly and conduct most of the day-to-day business.

Elected

Eleven members are directly elected under the 'Local Elections (

Principal Areas {{Short description, Formal legal term for a county in England and Wales In England and Wales local government legislation, a principal area is one of the sub-national areas established for control by a principal council. They include most of the ar ...

) Rules' by the residents of the

civil parishes In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority. ...

who contribute to the Conservators' funds through a

levy Levy, Lévy or Levies may refer to: People * Levy (surname), people with the surname Levy or Lévy * Levy Adcock (born 1988), American football player * Levy Barent Cohen (1747–1808), Dutch-born British financier and community worker * Levy Fi ...

in their

council tax Council Tax is a local taxation system used in England, Scotland and Wales. It is a tax on domestic property, which was introduced in 1993 by the Local Government Finance Act 1992, replacing the short-lived Community Charge The Community C ...

(similar to the precept raised for parish councils). The town of

Malvern Malvern or Malverne may refer to: Places Australia * Malvern, South Australia, a suburb of Adelaide * Malvern, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne * City of Malvern, a former local government area near Melbourne * Electoral district of Malvern, an e ...

and the parish of

West Malvern West Malvern is a village and a civil parish on the west side of the north part of the Malvern Hills, on the western edge of Worcestershire, England. It has become effectively a suburb of Malvern and part of an urban area often called ''The Malve ...

together return six members (one elected by each of the six district wards constituted), the parishes of

Malvern Wells Malvern Wells is a village and civil parish south of Great Malvern in the Malvern Hills district of Worcestershire, England. The parish, once known as South Malvern, was formed in 1894 from parts of the civil parishes of Hanley Castle, Welland, ...

and

Little Malvern Little Malvern is a small village and civil parish in Worcestershire, England. It is situated on the lower slopes of the Malvern Hills, south of Malvern Wells, near Great Malvern, the major centre of the area often referred to as ''The Malverns' ...

together elect one member (they constitute one district ward), the parish of

Colwall Colwall is a civil parish in Herefordshire, England, situated on the border with Worcestershire, nestling on the western side of the Malvern Hills at the heart of the AONB. Areas of the village are known as Colwall Stone, Upper Colwall which sha ...

elects two members, and the parishes of Mathon and

Guarlford Guarlford is a village and civil parish in the Malvern Hills district in the county of Worcestershire, England. It is situated between the settlements of Barnards Green and Rhydd approximately three kilometres (two miles) east of Great Malvern, ...

each elect one member.

Appointed

Further, twelve members are appointed by the local authorities that cover the Malvern Hills (eight by

Malvern Hills District Council Malvern or Malverne may refer to: Places Australia * Malvern, South Australia, a suburb of Adelaide * Malvern, Victoria, a suburb of Melbourne * City of Malvern, a former local government area near Melbourne * Electoral district of Malvern, an e ...

, two by

Herefordshire Council Herefordshire Council is the local government authority for the county of Herefordshire in England. It is a unitary authority, combining the powers of a non-metropolitan county and district. History The council was formed on 1 April 1998 followi ...

and two by

Worcestershire County Council Worcestershire County Council is the county council for the non-metropolitan county of Worcestershire in England. The most recent elections to it were in 2021. Worcestershire County Council has its headquarters at County Hall in Worcester, wh ...

), the parish councils of Colwall and Mathon each appoint a member, Worcestershire County Council appoint further members on behalf of parishes (one each for

Powick Powick is a village and civil parish in the Malvern Hills district of Worcestershire, England, located two miles south of the city of Worcester and four miles north of Great Malvern. The parish includes the village of Callow End and the hamlets ...

, Newland and

Castlemorton Castlemorton is a village and civil parish close to Malvern in the Malvern Hills District in the county of Worcestershire, England. It consists of a village centre, a large common and many farms and houses within the area. In 2013 the Worceste ...

) and one member is appointed by the

Church Commissioners The Church Commissioners is a body which administers the property assets of the Church of England. It was established in 1948 and combined the assets of Queen Anne's Bounty, a fund dating from 1704 for the relief of poor clergy, and of the Eccle ...

Statutory duties

Under Acts of Parliament the Malvern Hills Conservators have the following statutory duties placed upon them: * To prevent encroachment * To keep the Hills and

Commons The commons is the cultural and natural resources accessible to all members of a society, including natural materials such as air, water, and a habitable Earth. These resources are held in common even when owned privately or publicly. Commons ...

as open space for

recreation Recreation is an activity of leisure, leisure being discretionary time. The "need to do something for recreation" is an essential element of human biology and psychology. Recreational activities are often done for enjoyment, amusement, or pleasur ...

* To conserve the Hills and Commons * To protect the rights of commoners to graze their

livestock Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to animals ...

on the land.

AONB Partnership

The formal Partnership for the Malvern Hills

Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB; , AHNE) is an area of countryside in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, that has been designated for conservation due to its significant landscape value. Areas are designated in recognition of thei ...

(AONB) is a separate organisation, though does include the Conservators and is also based at Manor House in Great Malvern.

References

External links

*
Malvern Hills Conservators National ArchiveMalvern Hills Act 1995 c. iiiMalvern Hills Bill Hansard, 8 March 1993Malvern Hills Bill Hansard, 15 February 1994
{{Authority control Conservation in England Environmental organisations based in England Charities based in Worcestershire Malvern Hills Local government in Herefordshire Local government in Worcestershire Malvern, Worcestershire