OFFICE UNITS OPEN AT CORNISH FARM

Three state-of-the-art rural office units - complete with underfloor heating and idyllic country views - have opened in redundant former piggery buildings near Liskeard.

Known as Ashleigh Meadow, the 51sqm units are at the entrance to Tregondale Farm, home of Stephanie and Mervyn Rowe for 30 years.

Their 260-acre mixed farm, one mile from Menheniot and conveniently near the A38, has a pedigree herd of 250 South Devon cattle, plus sheep and cereals.

The office project - a family venture - is the idea of son Richard and his wife Helen who live at adjacent Ashleigh.

They were supported by the Objective One funded Rural Development Capital Grant Initiative (RDCGI) which provided around one third of the cost of converting the buildings into impressive office space.

The Rowes had already diversified into bed and breakfast and refurbished a cottage for self-catering visitors. “But the farm has two families to support now and we had to move with the times,” explained Richard. “We didn’t want to go for residential development as we wanted to be fair to our neighbours.”

The Rowes stopped keeping pigs last year - mainly because of the foot and mouth outbreak which placed restrictions on the free movement of the animals – and decided to convert the two vacant piggery buildings.

“The new units are ideal for any sort of office business and people are already showing an interest in them,” added Richard.

Ample car parking is available and attractive landscaped gardens surround the units, with the old piggery yard well transformed into a decorative but safe feature.

RDCGI manager Marilyn Pryor, of Business Link, said: “This is an exciting project which uses farm assets in an imaginative way to generate a secondary income stream to support the family business as well as benefiting the local economy.”

If you are interested in diversifying your farm business or in any of the other agricultural programmes run by Business Link Devon and Cornwall, please contact 0845 600 9966 for further information.

The Rural Development Capital Grant Initiative is managed by the Business Link service for Devon and Cornwall. The Objective One funding comes from the European Agricultural Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF) and the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA).

For further press information please contact Ian Gent on 0845 600 9966 or 0777 1631518 or Janice Brazell on 0845 600 9966.