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Rural Diversification

— 02 Jun 2020


#1037

China Tower folly on the Bicton Estate converted to holiday accommodation

#1036

China Tower folly was converted to holiday accommodation while conserving the essential architectural character of the building

#1038

Traditional farm buildings can be repaired or converted

#1042

This plan for farm building diversification is in Devon

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Traditional farm building converted to shoot accommodation while preserving the historic fabric

#1041

Large estates often have historic buildings suitable for repair/reuse

Farm diversification barn Large v2

At the core of our practice is over 30 years of obtaining planning and listed building consent for farmers, country land owners and estates or private individuals, so we are very familiar with the myriad of bureaucratic pathways that have to be trod to get buildings and other structures built in the countryside.

We can be your expert guide and take this burden off your hands to allow you to concentrate on the creative stuff.

Supporting this central core of knowledge and expertise we have also developed many skills and systems that allow us to offer our client the complete service to get their particular projects up and running.

These services include but are not limited to:

  • Carry out pre purchase surveys and reports
  • Condition and fabric surveys
  • Development plans and approvals
  • Feasibility studies and masterplans
  • Pre-application submissions
  • Project master planning and programming
  • Layout planning including access
  • Funding support / grant application assistance
  • Project management / contract administration
  • CIL applications for exemption
  • Budget planning
  • Agricultural buildings 28-day notice
  • Sourcing, engaging and managing specialist teams
  • Sustainability studies and incorporation into projects

Both the need and the desire to find new ways to ensure the long term security of rural land owners and business has been gathering pace for some time. Now we are committed to Brexit, it is even more likely that rural businesses will have to be innovative and creative to stay viable and thrive in the future.

With the current lockdown restrictions likely to continue in some form or other for some time to come, many of the traditional routes for rural businesses to reach their market will never be the same again. It is therefore vital that rural communities find new ways to utilise their assets and diversify wherever they can. To date many have risen to the challenge and are finding ever more creative ways to adapt / expand their existing businesses.

This is where we at Jonathan Rhind Architects can offer a unique tailor-made service that can provide the expertise and experience to ensure your innovative ideas are successfully developed and rolled out into a thriving business.

We would be happy to assist you in any way we can, both in your ‘thinking phase’ – fleshing out the feasibility of your options; or in the ‘doing phase’ – making planning applications. Please give us a call or make contact via email. 

See below the types of development services we can help you with.

Rural Farm Diversification

  • Holiday accommodation
  • Permitted development agricultural buildings to:

- Class Q dwelling

- Class PA light industrial to dwelling

- Flexible business use

  • Farm shops
  • Restaurants, cafes
  • Community access
  • Affordable and open market homes
  • Environmental Land Management Scheme
  • Higher-Level Stewardship Schemes
  • Traditional building and repairs/re-use
  • Bid writing
  • Adaptation for shoot accommodation/entertainment

Rural Estates

  • Heritage Exemption Surveys
  • Landscape buildings
  • Farm building repairs/re-use
  • Higher-Level Stewardship Schemes
  • Alterations and re-use historic buildings
  • Heritage Statements
  • Holiday accommodation
  • Permitted development agricultural buildings to:

- Class Q dwelling

- Class PA light industrial to dwelling

- Flexible business use

  • Adaptation for shoot accommodation/entertainment
  • Development associated with Scheduled Monuments

See our Farm And Estate Diversification pages for further information

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