Malvern Hills Conservators
The Malvern Hills Conservators are a body corporate responsible for the care and management of the Malvern Hills and commons. They were established in 1884 and are governed by five acts of Parliament. They became a registered charity in 1984 and since April 2017 use the working name of the Malvern Hills Trust.
Membership
The conservators are a body of twenty-nine voluntary members, which meet as the Board four times a year; three Board Committees meet more regularly and conduct most of the day-to-day business.Elected
Eleven members are directly elected under the Local Elections (Principal Areas) (England and Wales) Rules 2006 by the residents of the civil parishes who contribute to the conservators' funds through a levy in their council tax. The town of Malvern and the parish of West Malvern together return six members, the parishes of Malvern Wells and Little Malvern together elect one member, the parish of Colwall elects two members, and the parishes of Mathon and Guarlford each elect one member.Appointed
Further, twelve members are appointed by the local authorities that cover the Malvern Hills, the parish councils of Colwall and Mathon each appoint a member, Worcestershire County Council appoint further members on behalf of parishes and one member is appointed by the Church Commissioners.Statutory duties
The conservators are governed by five acts of Parliament: the ', the ', the ', the ', and the Malvern Hills Act 1995.Under these acts, the Malvern Hills Conservators have the following statutory duties placed upon them:
- To prevent encroachment
- To keep the hills and commons as open space for recreation
- To conserve the hills and commons
- To protect the rights of commoners to graze their livestock on the land.