It preserves fossils dating back to the Viséan stage of the Carboniferous period, and represents a marine environment.

Study of the growth rings of fossil wood from other localities indicate that the British Isles had a monsoonal climate during the early Carboniferous, with tropical rainfall seasonality.

The presence of photosymbiotic coral and micritic envelopes on some crinoid ossicles indicates the formation was deposited within the photic zone in a marine environment of normal salinity.

The presence of the xenacanth Bransonella has been suggested to imply freshwater influence as xenacanths live mainly in freshwater habitats, however its presence in other marine formations suggests that Bransonella was a marine animal unlike its relatives.

[1] Apatite crystals formed by the recrystallization of phosphatic overgrowths are present on some conodont elements from the formation.