We are working with the Somerset Wildlife Trust to transform a former dairy farm on the Somerset Levels into an internationally recognised hub for research, innovation, and collaboration in lowland peatland restoration. The research carried out at the 81-hectare Honeygar site will advance the scientific understanding of peatlands on a local, national, and international scale.
The proposal includes laboratories, a lecture theatre, workshops, community spaces, and accommodation. We are focusing on the historic barns and farmhouse at the site’s centre, while Poynton Bradbury Architects will develop the masterplan and address the later 20th-century buildings.
Dating back to the mid-19th century, the historic agricultural buildings are arranged in a typical U-plan to shelter animals from the harsh winds off the Bristol Channel. By carefully adapting and restoring these vernacular stone and timber structures, the historic farmyard will be reinstated as the heart of the new facility.
Formed from organic matter deposited over thousands of years, peatlands have a unique ability to store and sequester carbon. The restoration of these habitats is critical in addressing the climate crisis, an ambition reflected in the wider site design, through architectural and landscape proposals that retain, restore, and recycle as much existing built fabric as possible.
The proposal builds on the agricultural character of the site, where contemporary materials and structures have been layered directly onto the historic fabric as the farm evolved. The new structures, built from a material palette of timber, corrugated sheet, and wood fibre insulation, will form lightweight extensions to the existing buildings.
