In late 2017, Stevenage local newspaper, The Comet, reported on the unfortunate dilapidation of Fairlands Valley Farmhouse, a Grade II listed building, secluded at the north end of Fairlands Valley Park in Stevenage, Britain’s first designated New Town. The article prompted local community organisations to put forward expressions of interest with the local council, the current owner of the property.
Stevenage Borough Council had inherited the site from Stevenage Development Corporation that had acquired the house and its 369 acres of land by compulsory purchase order around 1951 from its previous owner, Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge.
Operating predominantly as a dairy farm, farming at the site continued into the 1970’s, by members of the Marriott family, although activity reduced as the farm land was built upon and farming continued to be industrialised in the latter half of the 20th Century.
Although the intention of the Development Corporation was for farming to continue at the site, by the early 1990’s the farm became vacant and in 1993, Digswell Arts Trust took on a lease of the farmhouse, renting the property as studio space to graduate Art students from The University of Hertfordshire until the site was no longer safe due to a lack of maintenance and continued vandalism.
In 2008 the council had sought to sell the property, following suggestions that it may be an nice site for a new pub restaurant. That decision was not looked upon favourably by the Arts Trust’s tenants, nor by several local residents and a comprehensive Grade II listing of the site recognising its C17th and C19th features, including a large inglenook fireplace, was registered in 2009. This aided hampered any sale of the site and, although the property was reportedly marketed again in 2011 little, if any, interest was found.
Although being responsible for ensuring the property was kept in a fit state for it’s tenant, failure to effect repairs when needed assured that the town council could eventually dispose of the property through its deterioration.
When the property became derelict at the start of 2017, it was brought to the notice of local residents, and strategic efforts were made by a Hertford based organisation, CDA Herts, to acquire the site for private enterprise.
Through Stevenage World Forum, using the Localism Act (2011), the property was registered as an Asset of Community Value and was reported upon by The Comet newspaper. Some effort was seen to be made to persuade local residents that the property would be for community use and a business plan was drawn up purporting to turn the site to a ‘Healthy Living Centre,’ but this failed to fully respect the site’s heritage or the details of its noted architectural features. Members of the public were not informed of the groups plan to finance the repairs by running a privately run pre-school in a prefab building on the property. The plan devised sought business proposals from local residents for use of the property.
The Comet was led to report on the listing of the Farmhouse, and officers of the town council were simultaneously led to believe that the property would be removed from their register of Assets of Community Value once conveyancing of the property would be completed; rather than the 5 years specified in legislation.
After seeing the newspapers article our founding director, in consultation with supportive and critical friends, established Friends of Fairlands Farm Community Interest Company to ensure the cultural and historic significance of the site would not be lost.
The founding director’s interest arose from having knowledge of the farmhouse through his relationship with one of the aspiring artists who, suffering illness and depression following loss of both his parents during study for his Art degree, had spent several of his final years at the farmhouse. Knowledgeable in building architecture and maintenance, but much to his demise the artist had appropriately challenged and balanced the egregious endeavours of Council office and the Arts Trust’s trusteeship during his time there by ensuring necessary maintenance and protection of site was provided to the fullest extent he and his peers could reasonably achieve.
In corporation the C.I.C. committed to ensuring the emerging society of Britain’s first New Town would in years to come continue to have the benefit of enjoying and learning from the unique character of the site, but in so doing address needs of a growing town with progressive education in urban farming for Heritage, Horticulture and Health, but not without Humour. The CICs named beneficiaries are Alzheimer's Research UK, the Royal Horticultural Society and Cancer Research UK; it’s acronym provides a source of amusement.
Formation of the C.I.C. was a necessary step with which to engage in discussion with council about proposals for the farms future, and with an expression of interest accepted by council, it was learned that 3 submissions had been provided and accepted by the officers.
Then learning of the extent of damage to the property it consolidated the view that there was no existing community group within Stevenage that could easily muster the efforts required to breathe life into the farm again. Council’s own condition survey report determined a cost of near £650k of necessary repairs to bring just the farmhouse back into use.
Pondering the term ‘deep pockets’ as required by the Leader of the Council, the issue of financing purchase of the site was suggested to be in the order of £250k, however the sum that may reasonably be received by the Council should be determined under the Land Compensation Act 1961 and is believed now to be considerably less than that due to the further dilapidation resulting from neglected repairs and site security.
The directors expressed they would be interested in working together with other interested parties and it became known to them that one of those was Stevenage World Forum for Ethnic Communities. The Arts Guild was believed to potentially be the third organisation, and was approached, but it failed to respond to enquiries at the time.
Embarking with discussion with the World Forum for Ethnic Minorities and the chair of the residents group we quickly learned of significant conflict of interest held by the chair of Trustees who let slip of her previous involvement with our farm as a Trustee of Digswell Arts Trust and had failed to disclose her interest as CEO of CDA Herts. Further concerns of impropriety were raised by CIC supporters when, at an impromptu ‘public consultation’ that in the circumstances should not have taken place, claims were made publicly that World Forum was the ‘lead’ organisation for the restoration and ideas proposed to support a minority community sectors were removed from the suggestions placed to that group, as were other ideas not already part of plans already prepared by their group prior to our first discussion.
Stevenage Festival, known as the organiser of the revived Rock in the Park, turned out to have been the third interest. Rock in the Park had been held in Fairlands Valley for several years, but a lack of robust risk assessment brought it to a halt for some years before it could return as part of Stevenage Day at St. George’s Playing Fields. In discussion following the public meeting it was explained to us that Stevenage Festival’s expression of interest was submitted for involvement, without intention to place a separate bid. Slight indications were given that it wished to ensure appropriate regeneration of the property would take place, but our checks would eventually expose some serious risks to the preservation of the heritage site, worse than the council’s lack of investment.
We had already been in discussion with and received invites from community residents groups and local charitable communities in other areas of the town besides Bedwell, notably Stevenage Furniture Recycling Scheme and Bragbury End Garden Group.
With advice from Martha Lytton-Cobbold, the Society for Protection of Architectural Buildings was consulted and advice also taken from Heritage Lottery Fund from which arises the requirement to create a recognised charity to acquire HLF funding and increase the value of donations via gift aid. We were immediately offered local community budget funding to cover legal fees to ensure our registration documentation and objects would be sound.
The Fairlands Farm Community Heritage Trust charity (in formation pending £5k of funding to be raised) for the preservation and protection of the capital assets is held under the directorship of Friends of Fairlands Farm CIC.
‘Friends of Fairlands Farm CIC’ is a Community Interest Company Limited by Guarantee, registered in England and Wales, registration number 11086004.
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