MALVERN Hills Conservators have published their annual report on a year of change and development.

Chairman Brian Wilcock has completed his three-year term of office and handed over to Richard Graves.

Those years have seen big changes to the organisation's management structure, including the appointment of a director, agreement on a new management plan and closer ties with other agencies.

The board is also a major partner in a scheme to reintroduce grazing to the hills and to restore some of its spring water sites, a plan which has attracted significant Lottery funding.

During the year, the board has overseen restoration work at St Ann's Well and the Wyche Shelter, plotted its land on to computer, been involved in the naming of Millennium Hill and had its public seats surveyed by students from Malvern College.

Staff training has include aerial tree climbing, upland path management and chainsaw certificates.

One negative event was the theft of the Toposcope from Worcestershire Beacon, although the board has now provided a replacement. Items for the future includes reviewing its performance on grass cutting and expanding the number of dog waste disposal bins. More than 1,800 hours were spent on litter clearing between September 1999/00, more than 1,600 on scrub clearance and around 1,500 on mowing.