In the winter of 2020 we undertook the design and construction of the School House for Tokes Farm (www.tokesfarm.org), a land based education project near Shaftesbury in Wiltshire. The building design was inspired by American prairie houses, which often utilised lots of timber and had large verandahs to serve as a practical in-between space between the outside and in. 

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Red Kite worked to help guide a self build team that constructed a 94m2 building in 2.5 months over the winter. The building was designed using Walter Segal style A-frames that we could pre-fabricate in a barn. This meant that minimal pad foundations were required, which reduced the amount of time that large machinery had to be on site. All the timber used was UK sourced and untreated. With larch being used for the large roof section. Externally the building has corrugated on 3 sides in order to comply with the planning requirement of the Cranborne Chase AONB and larch cladding on the side of the verandah. The timber frame is well insulated as the building is only heated with a woodturning stove. Finished internally with oak floor boards and curved reveals, we are delighted with how the project has turned out and hope that many children will be inspired by Lily within this space.