Journal of the Chester Archaeological Society 84

Short obituary for Oliver Bott, who was Cheshire County Council's first Conservation Officer and led the multi-disciplinary Conservation team. Oliver initially trained as an architect, but his researches were widespread and led to publications in other areas, including a study of Cheshire field patterns, hedgerows and ridge-and-furrow ploughing, published as Ploughlands and Pasture, and Man's imprint on Cheshire, an account of the county's historic environment from prehistoric to modern times. A popular and highly regarded individual, Oliver was a Council member of the Chester Archaeological Society as well as a member of the Chester Civic Trust, the Chester Conservation Area Advisory Committee, and a founder and council member of the Landscape History Society. LD

A previous programme of archaeological assessment and evaluation at Southworth Quarry near Winwick in Cheshire had revealed the presence of a Roman enclosure and possible Bronze Age activity. Nearly eighty similar enclosures have been detected as cropmarks on aerial photographs within Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Merseyside and West Lancashire, but very little archaeological investigation has so far taken place. Further excavation of the Southworth site was undertaken in 2013 in advance of proposed quarrying and landfill operations. This covered an open area of about half a hectare, targeted over what remained of the enclosure, which was confirmed to be a rural settlement dating to the second century AD. Other plough-truncated features were recorded within and beyond the enclosure. The features outside the site may be medieval, but there was no evidence of prehistoric activity. The project has highlighted the destructive nature of agriculture at the Southworth site, with implications for the future management of similar sites across the region.

Introduces the Archaeology Planning Advisory Service, a sub-regional service which maintains the Cheshire Historic Environment Record and provides advice on policy and the archaeological implications of development for Cheshire East, Cheshire West & Chester, Halton and Warrington borough councils. This report summarises the fieldwork the service has instigated, reports received and other heritage management activities over the period April 2013 to March 2014. Featured fieldwork projects comprise: watching brief at St Mary's Church, Astbury; building recording and fieldwalking survey at Loachbrook Farm, Congleton; watching brief at the Bombardier site, Dunwoody Way, Crewe; watching brief on land at St Anne's Lane, Nantwich; watching brief at St Peter's Church, Prestbury; watching brief at St Bartholomew's Church, Wilmslow; excavation at Hulme Hall, Hulme Hall Lane, Allostock; evaluation and building recording at Bollands Court, Commonhall Street, Chester; evaluation at George Street School, Chester; evaluation at Commerce House, Hunter Street, Chester; watching brief at St Andrew's Church, Newgate Street, Chester; evaluation at the former 'Habitat' site, Pepper Street, Chester; evaluation at the former Boughton Retail Centre, Boughton, Chester; watching brief on electricity cable, Handbridge, Chester; building recording of a World War II railway control bunker, Chester railway station; evaluation at nos. 51--7 Upper Northgate Street, Chester; strip sampling at Chester Zoo Islands Project; evaluation of the former Magistrates Court, Brockhurst Street, Northwich; watching brief at Saighton Camp, Saighton; evaluation at Abbey Gate College, Saighton Grange, Saighton; pollen analysis at Hockenhull Hall, Tarvin; watching brief at the Fox and Hounds, Wet Lane, Tilston; evaluation at Norton Priory, Tudor Road, Halton; excavations at Southworth Quarry, Croft; excavation at Bank Park Depot, Kendrick Street, Warrington; excavation at the Horizon Centre, Loushers Lane, Wilderspool, Warrington; excavation at Riversdale, Woolston, Warrington. Au/LD