Stacks of local produce

View of Fodder

Inside the café

The new development at The Yorkshire Showground was officially opened last night: it includes superb office accommodation and meeting rooms for the Yorkshire Agricultural Society, along with office space for start up businessses with agricultural links from the region. The really tasty bit though is the farm shop and cafe, where trading is brisk. ’Fodder’ as it is aptly named,  opened its doors to the public earlier this month, and it really is worth a visit:  not only is it located in a great building with lots of eco friendly features, the shop is stacked full of locally sourced fresh and speciality foods.  So if you’re looking for something to do this weekend, take a trip to Harrogate..and fill your baskets (made from recycled plastic of course).

Sedum Roof at Yorkshire Agricultural Centre

Following Ben’s post on green roofs, here’s the sedum one at the Yorkshire Agricultural Centre.  The intrepid Heather Parry is pictured with Stuart Falshaw giving the roof some TLC.  This piece was in the Yorkshire Post on 14th March.

Here’s a link to EcoSalon’s list of 17 green roofs from around the world.

Interesting to flick through for 5 minutes and don’t worry, there’s some more modern stuff than the house shown above in there too.

One minute they’re designing fantastic buildings such as the new Regional Agriculture Centre at the Yorkshire Showground, the next they’re using their natural calming influence over one of the raw material suppliers: this is a reference to the sheep NOT the client!

In this picure Heather Parry of the Yorkshire Agricultural Society and Eamon Shutt of P+HS at a photocall promoting the sheepswool insulation used in this highly sustainable building.

One Architect and his Sheep

This and the following picture are of a Loch side B&B i came across in Broadford on the Isle of Skye recently.  This had an absolutley amazing view from it’s front window.

A modern sustainable highland croft that I came across on my recent holiday to the motherland,on the Isle of Skye.  One of these was designed by a company called rural designs.

a modern take on a highland croft.

Circle are the U.K.’s largest Partnership of healthcare professionals who have come together to provide accessible, 21st century healthcare to all patients. Circle has appointed design teams of international reputation to design a new generation of “compact” hospitals and clinics.

They are: Foster + Partners, Hopkins Architects and Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners. These firms have produced some of the most iconic buildings in Europe, including the Swiss Re Tower (the “Gherkin”), Lord’s Cricket Ground Mound Stand and Terminal Five at Heathrow Airport. Together with Circle, these three distinguished design firms will share knowledge and best practice around the better design of hospitals in the U.K.

The location, architecture and design of the Circle hospitals constitute a central part of our commitment to providing the highest quality patient experience. Circle will provide clinicians, associates and patients with an attractive working and visiting environment. The hospitals will be in accessible locations, provide sufficient car parking and will be set in landscaped surroundings.

Foster + Partners, Hopkins Architects and Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners will create designs that draw upon the healing properties of natural light, promote the soothing effects of colour, supply the stimulation of art and provide the reassurance offered by accessible, uncluttered internal spaces. According to Circle:

“We promote an environmentally sustainable approach to the design and construction of our buildings. Our commitment will be expressed through efficient uses of energy, the adoption of environmentally-friendly materials and the implementation of day-to-day policies of corporate social responsibility in Circle hospitals. All Circle facilities are subject to regulation by the Healthcare Commission.”

The new Dalby Forest Visitor Centre. Mostly timber, with some glulam beams. Let down by inadequate detailing and workmanship, which means poor finish and lots of future maintenance.

Don’t bother with the food - it ranks as one of the worst meals ever.

The Green Register recently met Paul Hambridge, the Managing Director of a new initiative called Recycle Community, and think his idea for reducing building waste is a brilliant one! 

Every building site produces waste material which can be reused for other projects, however at present the common practice is to dump the waste material in landfill sites or deliver it to reprocessing plants. 

On the Recycle Community website you can join as a supplier and post details of building materials you have available for recycling, or you can register as a customer and view those listings of building materials. 

take a look  If you’ve got any questions you can contact Paul by email at paul@recycle-community.com