Lodsworth Larder: Winner of 9 architectural and social enterprise awards
An extract from Woodsman: Living in a wood in the 21st century
by -:- Ben Law
This shop is constructed from materials sourced primarily from a derelict coppice in the parish, which enabled an ancient woodland to be restored, such that in the following year it sent out a flush of violet helleborine orchids.
The oak standards that were felled travelled fewer than three miles in total from the derelict coppice to the sawmill, where they were converted, air dried, then kiln dried, planed, and tongue and grooved, then returned to the building to form the oak flooring.
The construction of the shop involved the training of apprentices, and many villagers were involved in parts of the construction, as well as in the communal moving of the frames.
The shop employs two full-time local staff and is supported by community volunteers.
It carries out a number of community functions, from postal services and local information to ticketing for local events.
It supports and supplies local foods and fresh produce, and has become an important meeting point and social hub within the village.
Learn more about Ben Law’s ‘resource first’ approach to designing buildings at -:- Green Architecture Day 2016.