ALCR05398: Post-1988 Agricultural Land Classification Survey for Woodstock

Between 1989 and 1999, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food conducted detailed Agricultural Land Classification (ALC) surveys for individual sites in England and Wales. This dataset for the Woodstock survey includes scanned original paper maps, survey reports, and for some surveys, unedited sample point soils data and soil pit descriptions. The data is provided by the Government Digital Service and contains Natural England and Ordnance Survey copyright.

Use Cases

• Classify agricultural land capability based on the detailed grading methodology described in the survey reports.
• Analyze soil characteristics and variability using the unedited sample point soils data and pit descriptions.
• Map land quality subdivisions, such as Grade 3a and 3b, for regional planning and development assessments.
• Integrate historical land classification data with modern geospatial layers for longitudinal land-use studies.

Strengths

• Uses the current, formally described Agricultural Land Classification grading methodology for England and Wales.
• Includes subdivision of Grade 3 into subgrades 3a and 3b for more granular analysis.
• Contains original, detailed survey materials including maps, reports, and for some sites, raw soils data.

Limitations

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

Provenance

Source

Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (survey), Government Digital Service (platform).

Collection Method

Detailed site surveys with mapping at scales from 1:5,000 to 1:50,000, typically 1:10,000.

Time Range

1989-1999

Freshness

Survey data collected between 1989 and 1999; metadata freshness unknown.

Geography

Individual survey sites in England and Wales (Woodstock).