As a parish common, the site experienced a chequered history of management with local parishioners grazing their livestock and cutting hay, and reports of gypsies regularly using the Common for their horses and coppicing the alder trees. There have also been attempts to drain the site by excavating ditches on three sides of the Common and a central ditch through the southern half of the pasture. Fortunately these attempts have not been successful - the Common still has poor drainage with the ironic added benefit of several areas of open water habitat.