West Midlands estate receives £2m Lloyds investment for eco guest accommodation

A Staffordshire landed estate and farm is set to open a new sustainable guest accommodation as part of diversification plans to ensure its long-term future, thanks to a £2m funding package from Lloyds Bank.

Lloyds Bank provided funding for the build of Constantine House via its Clean Growth Financing Initiative, which gives customers access to discounted lending for green purposes. Thorpe Estate is a 3,000-acre working estate in Thorpe Constantine, Tamworth, which has been under the stewardship of the same family since 1631.

The arable and livestock farm provides beef to Waitrose, potatoes to McCain and enough wheat to bake 35 million loaves of bread each year. Thorpe Estate is home to Thorpe Garden, a historic walled garden and 200-capacity wedding venue operated by specialist rural weddings business, Cripps & Co.

Since the venue’s opening in 2019, the Estate has been getting underway with plans to meet the demand for nearby accommodation from couples and their guests and further diversify the Estate’s income opportunities. With the support of Lloyds Bank, work began in Summer 2022 to convert an old Victorian redbrick farmhouse into Constantine House.

The exclusive-use guest accommodation, located next to the wedding venue, has 21 ensuite bedrooms, including a bridal suite, and a lounge, bar and dining area. Constantine House is expected to attract 8,000 guests per year, generating £500k revenue for the Estate.

Constantine House has been sustainably refurbished to maximise energy efficiency. Along with the Estate, it is entirely energy self-sufficient, operating on renewable energy generated by two biomass plants using by-products from farming activity and woodland management.

Constantine House’s windows have been replaced with double glazing, the loft, walls and floors have been fully insulated, sensor activated LED lighting has been fitted and all toilets are low-flush to reduce water usage. The renovations have allowed the building to go from EPC rating D to A, the highest possible energy efficiency rating a property can receive.

Further plans are in the pipeline for a 167-acre solar farm, capable of powering 10,000 homes per year. The Estate is also looking to restore other historic buildings to create additional workspace, a wellness offering accompanied by wild swimming facilities, and repurpose its old 10,000 sq ft granary into a restaurant and co-working space.

Tristan Lillingston, development director and part of the family who own the Estate, is spearheading the Constantine House project. He commented: “Sustainability and conservation is central to the Estate and our family, and these values have shaped every aspect of Constantine House.

“In our family, we believe in an old phrase: ‘we don’t inherit land from our parents, we borrow it from our children’. I want to ensure the work we’re doing leaves the Estate and the world a better place to hand on to my children.”

By Matthew Neville – Senior Correspondent, Bdaily

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