Cornwall Heritage Trust bids to buy Tregonning Hill

The hill contains a number of public paths and a war memorial

A heritage trust has submitted a bid to purchase a historic hill in Cornwall.

Cornwall Heritage Trust said it wanted to buy Tregonning Hill, near Helston, to "safeguard its future and ensure public access remains".

The 70-acre (28 hectare) site contains monuments dating back to the Iron Age and in 1768 became the first location to be mined for china clay.

It was listed for sale by estate agents for £150,000, and Historic England has welcomed the trust's bid.

Cathy Woolcock, chief executive of the trust, said the site had "complex needs" since much of it is protected as a scheduled monument.

She said: "Tregonning Hill is a unique part of Cornwall's heritage, so when it came onto the market we knew we needed to try and purchase the site to safeguard its future and ensure public access remains... we want to make sure it gets the care it deserves."

Tregonning Hill is listed for sale for £150,000

Of the trust's bid, Historic England said the site "deserves the protection and management of an organisation committed to the preservation and careful management of Cornwall's heritage".

The site includes Bronze Age burial mounds, the Iron Age hillfort of Castle Pencaire, two defended settlements or rounds, a well-preserved medieval field system, a quarry where Methodism founder John Wesley was believed to have preached and a war memorial.

It also contains two rare plants - lawn chamomile and western liverwort - which means part of the hill is designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest. Much of the site is accessible and is crossed by public footpaths.