Five Acres Community Garden at Brafferton has reached a major milestone, with the five-acre site now officially operating off-grid.
The achievement marks an exciting step forward for the community garden, which was created to give its Champions a place to learn, develop new skills, spend time outdoors and enjoy new experiences, while building a sustainable space for the future.
Over recent months, the site has undergone significant development. A new solar farm is now fully operational, providing renewable energy, while a newly installed borehole supplies fresh water. The addition of a fully functioning toilet block means Five Acres now has the essential facilities needed to make greater use of the site throughout the year.
Reaching this point has been a team effort, with support from a number of organisations and individuals.
A huge thank you goes to Oakes Energy Services Ltd, whose expertise and hard work helped turn the vision of renewable, off-grid energy into reality. The borehole was made possible with the support of Drilcorp, special thanks to Jaxon, Scott, Sam and Jonathan for their work installing it.
Support from the Teesworks Benevolent Foundation, particularly Jackie and Heather, also played an important role in providing the new toilet facilities. Mike from Evri Building Solutions Ltd installed the toilets, while John from Palram generously donated materials to help complete the project.
The transformation has also been captured on film thanks to Lee from DigiFin, who worked with Oakes Energy Services and Five Acres to produce a promotional video documenting the project. Using drone footage, the video offers a unique view of how far the site has come.
For Five Acres, the new facilities represent much more than simply having electricity, water and toilets. They provide the foundations for the next stage of the garden’s development and open the door to even more activities, learning opportunities and experiences for its Champions.
What began as an empty field is steadily becoming a thriving community space, with animals, growing areas, activities and opportunities for people to learn, grow and create lasting memories.
Everyone involved at Five Acres is incredibly proud of the progress made so far and grateful to the people, businesses and organisations who have helped make it possible. With the site now equipped with its own renewable energy and water supplies, the future is looking brighter than ever. This is our five acres. This is our future, and we’re only just getting started.