Agricultural Land Classification detailed Post 1988 survey ALCL04694

England and Wales agricultural land classification data from detailed site surveys conducted between 1989 and 1999 by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. The dataset includes scanned original paper maps, survey reports, and for some sites, unedited sample point soils data and soil pit descriptions. It uses the grading methodology from the 'Agricultural Land Classification of England and Wales' guidelines.

Use Cases

• Classify agricultural land capability based on the detailed grading methodology described in the survey reports.
• Analyze soil characteristics and variability using the available unedited sample point and soil pit data.
• Map historical land quality at varying scales (from 1:5,000 to 1:50,000) for regional planning comparisons.

Strengths

• Original survey data from a government ministry (MAFF) provides authoritative historical records.
• Includes the subdivision of Grade 3 land into subgrades 3a and 3b for finer granularity.
• Contains multiple data types: scanned maps, reports, and for some surveys, raw soils data.

Limitations

• Row count and file formats are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Last update date is unknown; freshness unverified.

Provenance

Source

Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF), provided via Natural England and the Government Digital Service.

Collection Method

Detailed field surveys with soil analysis, mapped at scales from 1:5,000 to 1:50,000.

Time Range

1989 to 1999

Freshness

Historical data covering 1989-1999; last update unknown.

Geography

England and Wales, specifically the Sandtoft airfield south (Boothferry) site.