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With your continued help…

While much focus is now on the delivery of the Black Barn Project we continue to seek support from Trusts & Foundations, from corporate partners and from individuals to contribute essential funds for day to day running and to deliver the wider vision for Woodoaks beyond this immediate project.

With your continued support, we are confident of raising at least £100K each year to ensure Woodoaks’ future is secure as a thriving hub of community connection, learning and events, restoring nature, growing healthy food and fighting climate change together.

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Donate now and contribute towards Woodoaks Farm’s new public spaces, a new approach to farming and better nature all across the farm.

Black Barn Project

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We have now raised the full target of over £2.5M to fully restore the Black Barn and to convert the adjacent buildings into a Community and Education Hub, providing the essential facilities to welcome and host visitors to Woodoaks year-round.

We are hugely grateful to our core funder The National Lottery Heritage Fund, and the generous backing of Trusts & Foundations including the Garfield Weston Foundation, the Rothschild Foundation and the Julia Rausing Trust together with the HS2 Community & Environment Fund and other Trusts and Foundations. Together with the incredibly generous support of individual donors, corporate partners and everyone who supported our crowdfund appeal, your combined support has secured this transformational development for Woodoaks future.

The Black Barn Project secures 1 and 4 of the essential stepping stones below, achieving our vision for Woodoaks. Your ongoing support will contribute to the other essential developments, listed here as 2,3 & 5.

Together, we are confident of fully funding all five key steps, securing Woodoaks’future at the heart of its local community, and as a nurturing hub for food, farming and nature, for generations to come.

01

CREATION OF THE COMMUNITY & EDUCATION HUB

The heart of the project – replacing a redundant concrete barn with a new building. Designed by Okra Studios the Nature, Community & Education hub will provide the core infrastructure to welcome visitors to Woodoaks year-round. It will provide teaching, meeting and event spaces, fully accessible toilets and a wheelchair accessible kitchen to teach the interrelationships between nature, people, food and farming. It will also secure the future of the Black Barn as a year-round event space. Our magnificent Grade II listed Barn will be able to host year-round education events and community celebrations for the first time. It will contribute future revenue as a venue for events, weddings, courses and workshops.

02

PROMOTE REGENERATIVE FARMING

The project provides a unique opportunity to engage both the farming industry and the general public with the transition of Woodoaks to organic and to regenerative farming methods. With new facilities to welcome visitors year-round we can demonstrate how changes to the farm landscape such as the creation of an agro-forestry field, improves both soil quality and biodiversity and captures carbon.

03

ENABLE COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT, BUILD VOLUNTEER SUPPORT

The new building and the fully restored Black Barn provide the essential infrastructure for local communities to visit Woodoaks on a regular year-round basis and to take part in a broad range of activities.

04

PROVIDE QUALITY SPACE FOR EDUCATION & SKILLS TRAINING

The new building has been designed to accommodate a double school visit (up to 60 children) by fully utilising the available space. Flexible configuration means that a valuable separate meeting room can be made available when required. The kitchen has been designed to be wheelchair accessible and will provide the facilities to enable food based teaching as well as to offer catering facilities for events in the Black Barn.

05

PROVIDING ACCESS TO A NATURE-ENRICHED LANDSCAPE

The conversion of Woodoaks to organic, the take-up of regenerative farming methods together with the facilities to welcome visitors year-round creates opportunities for more people to access a quality natural environment. By also investing in new circular walkways around the farm we can ensure visitors experience up close the rejuvenation of biodiversity and the return of wildlife and migrating birds to all areas of the farm.

1

Creating the Nature, Community & Education Hub: The Farm Team and Woodoaks Volunteers gather with Sally Findlay outside the Black Barn on confirmation of funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

2

Promoting Regenerative Farming: Woodoaks Agroforestry field, Summer 2024.

3

Enabling Community: A guided walk at Woodoaks, taking stock of the wildflower margins

4

Providing quality space: A pilot school workshop in the Black Barn ahead of our new hub being built.

5

Providing access: A regular walking group braving the rain to complete the circular farm walk at Woodoaks.