📝 Detailed information
🏢 About the local organisation
The Grayhill project is an historical restoration and re-enactment project based in a re-created 16th century landscape near Chepstow in Monmouthshire, they have been hosting international volunteers since the project began in 1987. Grayhill Historical Farm was bought by the Historical Land Group Trust and renovation of the entire 15.5 acre site to its late 16th early 17th century condition began in 1987. There are 30 fields in the 15 acres which have been returned to their historical land uses, hay meadows, pasture, woodland, arable, gardens and orchards. Ten collapsed period buildings have been restored so far, from Longhouses to pig sties. Much of the 3 miles of field boundaries have been reinstated along with ponds and wells. The site provides the ideal background for film shoots and educational courses as well as the production of period foodstuffs. The BBC historical documentary TV series Tales from the Green Valley was set here.
💼 What the programme involves
The camp covers two weeks and involves starting the process for restoration of some old buildings. this will involve removing the old thatch roof and moving new roof beams and timbers and putting them in place. If time the group may start to lay stone tiles on the roof. Volunteers will have a chance to work alongside other volunteers and develop their skills and knowledge of historic and sustainable building techniques.
🏠 Accommodation on site
This is an authentic historical experience, and as such facilities are very basic. There are no modern facilities on site, so no electricity or piped water - all water comes from a well. Toilets are external compostable and amp; a bucket of water is kept with Dettol mixed in to kill any germs for washing hands. At the entrance of the main building where food is cooked, eaten and stored, there is another bucket of water with Dettol, hand wash, hand sanitizer and nail brushes. Showers will be taken off site at the local swimming pool. For the accommodation, it will be with sharing tents: 4 cone tents that can sleep 2-4 people each and one large tent that can sleep 6. Tents generally divided by gender, however if there are friends or those who dont mind sharing gender happy with that. Cooking will be done over open fires by a member of staff on the project. Volunteers are invited to bring some recipes from home to share. If the volunteers want more / different food they can have a trip to a local shop. They can easily store anything they bring with in their tents. There are no clothes washing facility so we encourage you to bring a suitable amount of clothing with you, but the host can arrange for you to wash your clothes if you require it. There is limited phone signal at the farm and nowhere to charge phones, so please ensure volunteers are ready for this. We realise that these conditions can seem intimidating to many people, but we will assure you that it is not as scary as it seems. The art of living simply is often lost but we strive to create a humble, peaceful place full of nature s wonders in which you can have a complete break from reality. Who knows... you might never want to leave
📍 About the location
The Grayhill Farm is in an area of natural beauty and there is plenty to do and see in the surrounding areas, including Roman Ruins, official walks and rivers. There will be a diverse range of people involved in the project and they enjoy to spend evenings sharing nice meals and enjoying stories and music around the campfire. The project is close to train and bus terminals and the host can take you there in free days, so you can easily access nearby small towns and villages, and the larger cities of Newport, Cardiff, Bath and Bristol are also within 1 hr by train. Working hours are Breakfast at 8am, work starts at 9am, 1 hour lunch, work finishes at 5pm, dinner at 6pm. Wednesday afternoons will be free (3rd of July and 10th of July) and also have Saturday 6th / Sunday 7th off (usually one day off but two can be negotiated).