Pounds were essential adjuncts to the open fields that were unenclosed, with the growing crops prone to considerable damage by straying livestock. All the animals were the responsibility of their owners and were only released from the pound on payment of a fine. The feudal office of Pinder or Pound-Keeper was a necessary but unpopular one, which was often subject to abuse and occasional assault. Most medieval pounds were small fenced or hedged enclosures, though later brick or stone pounds such as the one in Over Whitacre were often constructed on the sites of former medieval ones. The Pound at Over Whitacre would have formed an integral part of the administration of the local affairs adjacent to the Heyne Field, the Moor Field and the Little Hill Field, and grazing would have been shared among all the members of the parish. A Manor Court, comprising a jury of twelve tenants, presided over by the Lord of the Manor, would have been held twice a year to ensure that good farming practice was observed, and that law and order was maintained. A member of the parish held the office of Pinder, or Pounder and it was his duty to drive straying stock out of the open fields and impound them here in the village pound, until claimed by their owners and the appropriate penalty paid.

Evidence of the Parish Pound in Over Whitacre survives in the name of the lane on which it is situated viz. Pound Lane. It is indicated on current maps which locate its exact position but at present it is not apparent.

The pound of Over Whitacre is one of the vestiges of our rural roots and the Open Field system which existed before enclosure. We are fortunate to have documentary evidence for the organisation and management of the parish system of Over Whitacre which survives. A map of Holt Hall estate of 1686 refers to the strip lynchets which existed at that time in the three open fields viz. The Hayne Field, The Moor Field and The Little Hill Field. The Tithe map for Over Whitacre of 1842 (CR 328-32) shows that alongside the Open Fields are Orchard Piece, (near Botts Green Lane) two enclosures called Pinfold Piece, and another called Pinfold Close, all of which are adjacent to the site of the Pound. Although parts of the Open Fields of Over Whitacre had been enclosed by the time the Act of 1819 was passed, 130 acres are mentioned in the Act which were subsequently enclosed. (HL/PO/PB/1/1819/59G3n121)

It is hoped that the Pound could be included in Local History Study units for the National Curriculum, Key Stage 2. By learning about the landscape, children would understand its economic, geographic and historical significance.