Pineapple Group - Offices Appointment - Cholsey

Date: 19 Mar 2008

Two exceptionally stunning offices created from the conversion of one of the renowned historic- listed Great Barns at Cholsey, have been officially opened by Mr Richard MacDonald CBE NFU Director General. Mr MacDonald praised the Bitmead family for conserving and preserving the past by making a redundant farming building into a facility that will benefit the farm and the rural community, today and in the future. Just what should be happening to redundant assets on farms.

The historic Great Barns at Manor Farm, Cholsey were first erected in the early 1700s and have been in the ownership of the Bitmead family for the last 100 years. They were originally used for threshing corn and more recently for storing potatoes grown on the farm. Mr Stephen Bitmead explains the reasoning behind the project: 'The family has owned this beautiful old barn for nearly a century. No longer appropriate for modern farm equipment, we believe a sympathetic conversion to offices is the best way of preserving a working building for many future generations.'

UK rural property specialist the Pineapple Group has managed the conversion on the family's behalf. The Bitmead family expect that the offices will be attractive to companies wanting a rural location, but needing state-of-the-art facilities: Many of the historic features have been maintained and incorporated in the new design, including exposed elm timbers. It has the look and feel of an old historic building, but with the necessary cabling infrastructure to meet modern office needs. Care has been taken to make the project environmentally sensitive. Stephen Bitmead continues: "Large windows maximise natural light. Pumps using ground source energy provide heating in winter, and cooling in summer. There is ample car parking and space for cycles. Manor Farm is also convenient for the local station, shops and restaurants."

Under-floor heating and comfort cooling is provided by a ground-source heat pump. This renewable energy system relies on latent underground heat to provide energy and reduces the need for fossil-fuel based energy sources. It therefore offers the potential for reduced heating bills. In the summer the system can be reversed to provide comfort cooling with excess heat being carried back into the ground.

L-R: Andrew Dyke, Pineapple Group; Richard MacDonald NFU, Director General, Stephen & Penny Bitmead, Owners.