Cinderford Northern Quarter, Spine Road, Gloucestershire - Evaluation

The Homes and Communities Agency is currently devising proposals for the redevelopment of land situated on the north-eastern fringe of Cinderford in Gloucestershire (centred on NGR SO 64447 15435). The study area is known to have been a focus for coal-mining activity from the medieval period onwards, the historical importance of which has been highlighted in an archaeological desk-based assessment
of the site that was carried out recently. This comprehensive study concluded that the proposal site has a high potential for buried archaeological remains of significance, which may merit preservation by record should they survive in-situ.
Following on from the desk-based assessment, the Heritage Team Leader at Gloucestershire County Council recommended that an initial programme of intrusive archaeological evaluation of the site was carried out to determine the extent, depth, chronology and relative significance of any buried archaeological remains, and thereby inform the planning process. In accordance with this recommendation, a
scheme of initial evaluation trenching, devised by Parsons Brinckerhoff, allowed for the excavation of 14 trenches, which were targeted on the sites of heritage assets
identified in the desk-based study.