The Black Barn Project is the first in a series of major investments in Woodoaks Farm by the Soil Association Land Trust to restore the farm to the heart of its local community, making it fully accessible to people of all ages and abilities so they can discover, learn and get involved in food, farming and nature.
With major funding secured from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, national Trusts and Foundations and many generous individuals, the project is fully funded and is being delivered over the next four years. This ambitious £2.5M project creates a new lease of life and safeguards our magnificent Grade II–listed 16th-century Black Barn by delivering a highly sustainable, fully accessible community and education hub alongside it.
The new hub provides the essential facilities to welcome people to Woodoaks year-round, including flexible new spaces for meeting and learning, fully accessible toilets, and a prep kitchen — enabling year-round programmes in food, farming and nature for schools, practical resources for our growing team of volunteers and to enable full access to the farm for local voluntary organisations and community groups.
The magnificent C16th, Grade II listed ‘Black Barn’, with its panoramic views, sits at the heart of the project and currently provides an inspiring setting for education and community events but remains open to the elements.
Part of the project will be to complete its restoration by adding sympathetic glazing to the great door openings. Thus, making it weatherproof whilst allowing light in and retaining the stunning views across the landscape.
Adding these doors will protect The Black Barn into the future, enable all year round to use and increase the number private hire events, in turn generating new income for the farm and it’s financial resilience.
The two cart sheds will be further restored to provide a dry welcome and reception area with boot and hand washing facilities for visitors, guests, educational groups and our ever-growing volunteer force.
We will create a brand new flexible, multi-purpose education, meeting and communing space, by demolishing and rebuilding the nearby unsightly modern concrete barn.
The new building will provide a welcome gateway to the surrounding landscape and a warm and inclusive reception for many more, visitors, volunteers & community organisations every year.
Building with our Communities needs at the forefront of design.
Okra were the right team to design Woodoaks’ Education and Community hub. They have an incredible reputation for delivering exceptional rural learning and engagement spaces developed through an extensive co-design process with the local community as key users of the space.
A detailed and inclusive research phase has been completed, consulting with our local communities and their needs for the space. Community groups and organisations have been centre stage of the process engaged with and listened to, with the design of the hub reflecting this. Provision has been made for a separate meeting room, a safe quiet space, a wheelchair accessible kitchen, a well sized disabled toilet together with a Changing Places toilet also located on the farm.
Okra’s Researched Architectural Brief presents a summary of the design process and is available on request to anyone considering a donation to the project.
Please contact: Simon Farley, Head of Fundraising, Soil Association Land Trust. E: sfarley@soilassociation.org for further information.
Donate now to create a healthier future for nature, food, farming and Community.
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