SNN105410 - DIRFT Expansion, Kilsby, Northamptonshire: Great Crested Newt Receptor Site, Assessment Report on Archaeological Watching Brief

An archaeological watching brief was undertaken during the excavation of four ponds for a great crested newt receptor site to mitigate possible adverse impacts by construction activities on archaeological remains. The site lies in an area of known archaeological significance represented by remains that have included extensive Iron Age settlement recorded during excavations at Covert Farmon DIRFT East c. 0.5km to the south east. The stretch of the A5 bounding the site respects the line of the former Roman road (Watling Street). No archaeological features or residual material of prehistoric, Romano-British or medieval date were observed during the watching brief. A recorded alluvial sequence suggests that the site lay within the confines of a broad palaeochannel and Roman periods, downstream from the known occupation previously recorded at Covert Farm and Long Dole, which appeared not to have extended onto the site. No roadside ditches or other features associated with the Roman road were identified in the four ponds. Finds of pottery, clay tobacco pipes, tile and glass recovered from the former cultivation soil and the existing topsoil were probably derived from late post-medieval and modern agricultural activity associated with field manuring.