Community Spirit

Playing our part

Local residents planting trees on the Estate

Our customers come from all over the country, some from all over the world – but at Farncombe Estate, we take great care to play our part in our local community. Our umbrella company, Sorven Holdings Ltd, is one of the biggest employers in our rural area – all our staff live within a 20-mile radius of the Estate – and we are very aware of our importance to the local economy.

We try to demonstrate our commitment to our neighbours whenever we can. We make an effort to connect with local charities and do our bit for organisations that need our help. We get involved in sponsorships (for instance, the Evesham River Festival, the Winchcombe Music & Arts Festival and the Broadway Arts Festival) and we try to find imaginative ways to make a difference…

Ban the bag!
Farncombe Estate supplied 300 jute Ecover shopping bags to the Post Office and Village Stores in nearby Willersey village, to help discourage the use of plastic carriers. As a consequence, Willersey became one of the first villages in the Cotswolds to ban the plastic bag.

“Both our shops stock Ecover products so we are delighted such a successful brand have supported this initiative in our community,” said retailer Mike Knowles. “It seems fitting to launch the scheme to our regular customers on 22nd April, which is Earth Day 2008.”

School’s cool
From time to time, our chefs give a helping hand at Willersey Primary School cookery club. For instance, they taught culinary skills and helped prepare native American dishes as part of a Thanksgiving theme. The menu included Pumpkin Tarts, Three Ladies Soup made from squash, beans and corn, Indian Fry Bread and Pecan and Pumpkin Cookies. Head Chef Scott Courts and his Chef de Partie, Jamie Bennett, were delighted to share some tricks of their trade.

Girls just wanna have fun
In 2011, five Girl Guides from Evesham Senior Section (the Guiding movement’s programme for young women aged 14 to 25) spent a memorable summer’s evening at Farncombe Estate solving puzzles and practising co-ordination skills.

“I asked if we could bring the Guides over to Farncombe as a favour,” said Leader in Charge Amy Cook. “The Centre was delighted to help and invited us to use their on-site teambuilding activities for an evening of fun.

“The members really enjoyed the fact they could go off on their own to look for clues without having to be wary of the road. The leaders felt it was a very safe environment and it also allowed the girls to make a fair bit of noise without worrying that they were disturbing anyone.”