Simon King, President, with Philippa Forrester Vice President, and Roz Kidman Cox, Chair of Avon Wildlife Trust

Simon and school children have fun at Folly Farm on 1 May

Photos © C Davies

A 20-year dream of turning the historic farm buildings of Folly Farm into a place where people of all ages can learn about wildlife and environmental living finally came true on Thursday 1 May with the official opening of the Folly Farm Centre, on the outskirts of Bristol and Bath.

The opening ceremony was  performed by wildlife film-maker, presenter and photographerSimon King, who is also the president of Avon Wildlife Trust.

Simon King said: "The South West is famous for its rural nature and beautiful landscapes but around half-a-million of the people who live within 10 miles or so of Folly Farm are in built-up, urban, areas. For them, it isn’t always easy to get close to nature, to find safe, green, spaces, to exercise, run off steam, or bust stress, or to take up environmentally-friendly leisure interests. Avon Wildlife Trust’s new Folly Farm Centre will change all that - for children, adults, families and businesses.”

Plans for a residential visitor centre at Folly Farm have been under discussion ever since an anonymous donor helped Avon Wildlife Trust to buy the 250-acres Folly Farm site in 1987. But the dream only began to become real in 2004 when the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF), South West of England Regional Development Agency and Biffaward agreed to supplement local fund-raising efforts with major grants and donations.

Steve Grainger, Chief Executive of Avon Wildlife Trust, said: "There is no way that a small charity like ours could have raised the money for this project alone so we are enormously grateful to our major donors. But we must acknowledge that the new centre also owes its existence to the many individuals have given time, labour, advice,  bequests or donations from their pocket money, savings or pensions. Big amount or small, it’s all played a part and we’re indebted to them all.”

The new centre occupies a collection of 18th century farm buildings at the heart of the nature reserve – a nationally significant habitat for bats, birds, butterflies and a rich array of wildflowers, many of them rare or endangered.

Each building has been restored to protect its heritage features and to reduce the centre’s carbon footprint.  The development’s many environmentally-sensitive features include heating by woodchip, rainwater harvesting, a willow-based sewage treatment system and the first-known professional use of bricks made entirely from local clays.

Among the new opportunities offered by the centre will be day workshops and residential courses on a range of themes for schools and colleges; classes for adults in subjects as diverse as wildlife film-making, wildlife gardening and herbal medicines; guided nature walks, hands-on conservation volunteering, and a peaceful retreat for meetings, conferences and away days.