A BID to gain the status of Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty for the Forest of Dean gathered further momentum this week with the announcement of support from two leading local groups.

The Forest of Dean Local History Society and The Dean Archaeological Group have thrown their weight behind the efforts of the new pressure group, 'Friends of the Forest' who are determined to win AONB recognition.

The support has been welcomed by the chairman of the Friends, Mr Colin Smith, who is also a district councillor.

He said:"The district council are about to remove the Special Landscape Area protection from the historic landscapes of the Forest of Dean. The Dean by Definition project showed that local people treasure our unique landscape heritage but this is not being recognised in the Local Plan by giving it adequate protection. It is vital that AONB status should be granted now to the Forest by the Countryside Agency and the Government to protect our historic landscapes in planning law before it is too late."

Avril Kear, chairman of the History Society, said an AONB would ensure the Forest maintained its spectacular scenery and afford stricter planning protection.

For the Dean Archaeological Group, chairman Roger Horsfield said that many precious sites, some of national importance, needed the additional security provided by an AONB.

"Any lesser form of protection the committee considers to be inadequate in ensuring that a thorough and unbiased environmental assessment is demanded by statute law before possible irretrievable damage is committed," he said.