A derelict farm in Guestling Thorn has been rebuilt as a modern countryside retreat. In a transformation taking almost 10 years, the former brick cow shed and steel frame barn are now loft style units next to a 20 metre natural swimming pool.
The three acre site on Butcher’s Lane is now called Barnscapes and was developed by Colin and Linh Pennington, who purchased the land in 2017.
“It was very overgrown,” said Linh. “You almost had to crawl through the entrance. We’ve tried to reuse a lot of the material that was here and keep some of the rawness of the derelict buildings.”
“I wanted to create the kind of place I’d actually want to stay in,” said Colin. “Holiday accommodation can be very boring. If you go on holiday you don’t want to be in the same space you live in every day. So this is something unusual.”
The couple met while studying architecture. Colin is from Hastings and Linh is originally from Vietnam.
The new venture is aimed at small groups and larger events, including weddings. As well as the accommodation, there is also a communal greenhouse for shared meals, a kitchen and sauna. A third barn is being developed.
The swimming pool has already proved popular, in spite of the weather. It is biologically filtered and surrounded by shingle and coastal planting.
“People were in it on New Year’s Day,” said Linh. “We were full up and our visitors absolutely loved it!”
Image Credits: James Stewart , Barnscapes .