Hole Farm, a new community woodland
Hole Farm is a new 100-hectare multi-purpose woodland, sitting alongside the M25 at the northern end of the proposed Lower Thames Crossing
Hole Farm will include facilities for the local community such as:
- Café and WC facilities: providing a welcoming space for visitors to enjoy refreshments.
- All Abilities Loop and Network of Paths: including a fully accessible loop designed for people of all abilities.
- Visitors’ Car Park with EV charging provision: Offering convenient access to the woodland for all visitors.
- Network of Ponds: New ponds will offer habitats for local wildlife and provide a scenic element for visitors.
- Electric vehicle (EV) charging stations: Designed to expand for future demand, making it easier to use electric cars, benefiting the environment
- A Forestry England Ranger Station: to help park rangers create and maintain the new woodland
The woodland will be developed and managed in partnership with Forestry England. Find out more.
Opening Summer 2025
Work on the new community woodland is underway and it is due to open later this year.
We’ve now planted over 150,000 trees on the site with the help of volunteers from the local community and nearby schools, with species such as black poplar, oak, hazel and hornbeam. The species mix was developed with Forest Research, the UK’s principal organisation for forestry and tree-related research, taking account of the site geology, soil condition and climate, and will be professionally managed by Forestry England to ensure a healthy broadleaf woodland.
Since work began in September 2024, we’ve been busy developing construction plans, carrying out surveys, setting up a site compound, demolishing the old grain store and barn, and getting the transformation underway.
We’ve also refined our plans for the café and the substation and secured final approval from the Local Planning Authority.
Here’s the progress so far:
- New ecological ponds – We’ve dug three ponds in the northwest of the site. They’ve already filled with water and are attracting wildlife such as geese.
- New access route – We’ve built the main route linking the car park to Hole Farm Lane. This is currently a construction access road but will later become part of the site’s pathway network.
- More trees planted – We’ve now planted a total of 150,000 trees on-site.
What's next?
We’re about to start work on the café and substation, while our teams get ready to finish the rest of the site. This includes the car park, footpaths, water features, drainage, and play areas.
Click to view our interactive map and find out about work taking place in your local area.
Low carbon, diesel free construction and a local workforce
Building the new facilities embodies our commitment to using a local workforce and pushing the boundaries of low-carbon construction.
The work is being carried out by small- and medium-sized businesses from within 20 miles of the woodland, and the site will be diesel-free as hydrogen, electric, biofuel, solar and wind power are used to power the machinery and equipment.
Watch our short film on how our Delivery Partner, Balfour Beatty, are creating a local workforce.
Updated plans
As we now have a better understanding of the elements of work, local environmental conditions such as flood risks, and a clearer estimate of costs, we plan to deliver the community room and tree nursery included in our original design in a later phase. Some minor changes have also been made to the area of surface water drainage ponds, and the surfaces of paths in the western section of the woodland.
We’ve also recently refined our plans for the café and the substation and secured final approval from the Local Planning Authority
Timeline
Summer 2025 - Hole Farm Opens
The woodland is due to open later this year.
2024-2025 - Construction works
Works completed so far:
- Carried out survey works and demolished the existing farm buildings.
- Planted over 150,000 trees
- Three new ecological ponds in the northwest of the site have been dug. They’ve already filled with water and are attracting wildlife including geese which have been spotted by our site team.
The main new access route has been built linking the car park to Hole Farm Lane. This is currently a construction access road but will later become part of the site’s pathway network.
Read about the countdown to opening as work gets underway.
What you can expect
Our working hours are Monday to Friday between 08:00 and 17:00.
During construction you will notice and increased number of operatives on-site with an ongoing security presence throughout this period to assist with managing the facility.
Noise and dust mitigation measures are in place to minimise the impact of demolition works on residents.
We are installing temporary site compound soon, which involves increased vehicle deliveries via Hole Farm Lane.
December 2023 - Consent granted for community facilities
In December 2023, Forestry England was given the green light to build the proposed infrastructure and facilities for visitors at Hole Farm Community Woodland.
The plans for the green space were designed and developed with the needs of local people in mind, with feedback from local people incorporated into the final planning application.
November 2023 - 80,000 trees planted
Hole Farm will be home to around 150,000 new trees, and provide facilities for visitors, including a network of surfaced paths, a café and community room.
With the help of volunteers from nearby schools and community, Lower Thames Crossing and Forestry England have already planted over 80,000 trees on the site, including species such as black poplar, oak, hazel and hornbeam.
The species mix was developed with Natural England, the UK’s principal organisation for forestry and tree-related research, taking account of the site geology, soil condition and climate, and will be professionally managed by Forestry England to ensure a healthy broadleaf woodland.
September 2022 - How we shaped the plans for Hole Farm
The plans for the green space were designed and developed with the needs of local people in mind, with feedback from local people incorporated into the final planning application, which was given approval through the process of an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) for afforestation. The consent given by Brentwood Borough Council now clears the way for work to start on facilities.
7,000 questionnaires were sent to households in the surrounding area to gauge people’s opinions of the project and to hear what they would like to see, do and experience at Hole Farm community woodland.
Four follow-up virtual workshops were held with the local community, as well as drop-in days, which included guided tours of the proposed community woodland, to discuss the four main themes of the project: community and recreation, design and delivery, nature and biodiversity and access, traffic and public rights of way.
The information gathered was used to develop Hole Farm's woodland design and held our final consultation drop-in days in Great Warley in September 2022.
With the help of volunteers from nearby schools and community, Forestry England has already planted over 80,000 trees on the site, including species such as black poplar, oak, hazel and hornbeam. The species mix was developed with Forest Research, the UK’s principal organisation for forestry and tree-related research, taking account of the site geology, soil condition and climate, and will be professionally managed by Forestry England to ensure a healthy broadleaf woodland.
See photos from the tree planting below.
