Steyning Rifle Range was built during the Rifle Volunteer movement, which swept the nation in 1859. The concept of the movement was to be able to engage with an invading force in the absence of the regular army. This involved training a large group of men from each English county to become a part-time army. The 18th Sussex Henfield and Steyning Rifle Volunteer Corps formed in 1860 and trained on the Rifle Range from that date, firing their muzzle loaded rifles at a single iron target. The range was upgraded numerous times throughout its life, most notably in the Second World War, when the bulk of the structures you can see today were built. It closed in the late 1980s, due to tightening safety rules.

The steep banks on either side of the range are valuable fragments of what was once a widespread species-rich chalk grassland habitat. At one time, the iconic feature of the South Downs, it now covers just 4 per cent of the area of the National Park. In spring, look out for Common Spotted and Early Purple Orchid, Cowslip. These give way to a profusion of chalk grassland specialists, such as Wild Basil, Wild Marjoram, Greater Knapweed and Common Milkwort in summer, which together support up to 35 species of butterfly. 

The Rifle Range has one of the strongest populations of Brown Hairstreak butterfly in the UK. We maintain a fenced strip of Blackthorn (its food plant), adjacent to the wooded ghyll on the south side of the range.