Hole Farm – a new community woodland
A new woodland in Great Warley near Brentwood, Essex
Hole Farm is a new 100-hectare multi-purpose woodland, sitting alongside the M25 at the northern end of the proposed Lower Thames Crossing.
It will also include facilities for the local community such as:
- Café and WC facilities: providing a welcoming space for visitors to enjoy refreshments.
- All Abilities Loop and Network of Paths: including a fully accessible loop designed for people of all abilities.
- Visitors’ Car Park with EV charging provision: Offering convenient access to the woodland for all visitors.
- Network of Ponds: New ponds will offer habitats for local wildlife and provide a scenic element for visitors.
- Electric vehicle (EV) charging stations: Designed to expand for future demand, making it easier to use electric cars, benefiting the environment
- A Forestry England Ranger Station: to help park rangers create and maintain the new woodland
The woodland will be developed and managed in partnership with Forestry England. Find out more.
Opening in summer 2025
Work on the new community woodland is starting soon and it is due to open in summer 2025.
We’ve already planted 80,000 trees on the site with the help of volunteers from the local community and nearby schools, with species such as black poplar, oak, hazel and hornbeam. The species mix was developed with Forest Research, the UK’s principal organisation for forestry and tree-related research, taking account of the site geology, soil condition and climate, and will be professionally managed by Forestry England to ensure a healthy broadleaf woodland.
Work on the visitor facilities will start in September 2024, with demolition of the existing farm buildings followed by work on the ponds, paths, car park and other facilities.
Read more about the works at Hole Farm.
Low carbon, diesel free construction and a local workforce
Building the new facilities embodies our commitment to using a local workforce and pushing the boundaries of low-carbon construction.
The work is being carried out by small- and medium-sized businesses from within 20 miles of the woodland, and the site will be diesel-free as hydrogen, electric, biofuel, solar and wind power are used to power the machinery and equipment.
Watch our short film on how our Delivery Partner, Balfour Beatty, are creating a local workforce.
Updated plans
As we now have a better understanding of the elements of work, local environmental conditions such as flood risks, and a clearer estimate of costs, we plan to deliver the community room and tree nursery included in our original design in a later phase. Some minor changes have also been made to the area of surface water drainage ponds, and the surfaces of paths in the western section of the woodland.
Timeline
The woodland is due to open in Summer 2025.
Starting in Summer 2024, we will begin survey works and demolition of the existing farm buildings.
What you can expect
Our working hours are Monday to Friday between 08:00 and 17:00.
During construction you will notice an increased number of operatives on-site with an ongoing security presence throughout this period to assist with managing the facility.
Noise and dust mitigation measures are in place to minimise the impact of demolition works on residents.
We are installing temporary site compound soon, which involves increased vehicle deliveries via Hole Farm Lane.
In December 2023 Forestry England was given the green light to build the proposed infrastructure and facilities for visitors at Hole Farm Community Woodland.
The plans for the green space were designed and developed with the needs of local people in mind, with feedback from local people incorporated into the final planning application.
Hole Farm will be home to around 150,000 new trees, and provide facilities for visitors, including a network of surfaced paths, a café and community room.
With the help of volunteers from nearby schools and community, Lower Thames Crossing and Forestry England have already planted over 80,000 trees on the site, including species such as black poplar, oak, hazel and hornbeam. The species mix was developed with Natural England, the UK’s principal organisation for forestry and tree-related research, taking account of the site geology, soil condition and climate, and will be professionally managed by Forestry England to ensure a healthy broadleaf woodland.
The plans for the green space were designed and developed with the needs of local people in mind, with feedback from local people incorporated into the final planning application, which was given approval through the process of an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for afforestation. The consent given by Brentwood Borough Council now clears the way for work to start on facilities.
7,000 questionnaires were sent to households in the surrounding area to gauge people’s opinions of the project and to hear what they would like to see, do and experience at Hole Farm community woodland.
Four follow-up virtual workshops were held with the local community, as well as drop-in days, which included guided tours of the proposed community woodland, to discuss the four main themes of the project: community and recreation, design and delivery, nature and biodiversity and access, traffic and public rights of way.
The information gathered was used to develop Hole Farm's woodland design and held our final consultation drop-in days in Great Warley in September 2022.
With the help of volunteers from nearby schools and community, Forestry England has already planted over 80,000 trees on the site, including species such as black poplar, oak, hazel and hornbeam. The species mix was developed with Forest Research, the UK’s principal organisation for forestry and tree-related research, taking account of the site geology, soil condition and climate, and will be professionally managed by Forestry England to ensure a healthy broadleaf woodland.
See photos from the tree planting below.
