Kitchen Garden | Neath
Bespoke self-catering accommodation within a restored Kitchen Garden at Gnoll Country Park
As part of a suite of interventions within the grade II* Registered Park & Garden, this project looked to provide 5* self-catering accommodation in the area that was once served as a Kitchen Garden on the estate.
Heavily overgrown, not much remained of the formal layout or structures that once supported the growth of food for the manor house. Remnants of the garden included several derelict potting sheds that had latterly been used as stores for the Park’s department; the historic walls, which still gave an indication of the form and layout; and 4 distinct areas, which began to indicate the layout and likely varied growing characters.
Supported by the business plan that demonstrated this area to have income-generating potential, the scheme looked to develop a design rationale rooted in its historical context, whilst securing the required number of accommodation units. Emphasis was placed on balancing the proportionality and needs of the business case with the historical importance of the garden, with the interventions seeking to enhance the interpretation of the garden through their careful design and placement.
The kitchen garden was introduced to the Gnoll Estate to provide food for the manor house. Beds of diverse herbs, medicinal plants and dye plants, edible flowers as well as salads, vegetables and fruit were grown alongside orchards, dovecotes and beehives, which would have been prepared together with fish from the ponds. The gardens were established on the innovations and ingenuity of the day to diversify the produce they grew, including the use of glasshouses and potting sheds. Such structures were once prevalent throughout the kitchen garden, however, apart from the partially retained stone walls to the area, they had subsequently been largely lost as the area has become forgotten within the parkland.
Research into the kitchen gardens established the basis for their layout and structure, with the proposals to develop high quality, accommodation within this area, being based on reintroducing the lost sense of place. Building on our knowledge of the benefits of off-site construction, prefabricated pods have been integrated through their design, materiality and placement, to reference the historical typology and layout of potting sheds and glass houses.
The scheme also includes the restoration of a number of potting sheds to provide self-catering accommodation, alongside ancillary support buildings. Of paramount importance is the structured landscaping scheme around the pods that reinterprets the kitchen garden layout, providing a recognisable formality and character, that enables a coherent and desirable holiday destination. Whilst planning consent has been achieved for this element, its implementation is currently on hold.
