Small area of woodland wanted for rent

[Sophy]

Hi All,

I have joined SWOG as I am looking to rent a small area of woodland or open pasture.

To give you some background, I am looking to undertake a business venture to open a small and environmentally friendly Tipi Site. Unfortunately I do not own land, and so I am looking to rent a small area of land on a farm or woodland area. I would like to open the site next spring, and it would only be open during the spring/summer months (March-September). The site would promote sustainable tourism, and will strive to be environmentally friendly wherever possible.

The site would be a small, certified campsite consisting of around five tipis initially, with the view of possible expansion in future years. I would be fully responsible for the running of the site.

I am looking for land preferably in the south eastern regions- such as Kent, East sussex, Surrey, Hampshire, but I am willing to consider land further afield.

I look forward to hearing from anybody interested that may have a suitable piece of land, and any other feedback you may have.

Thanks for your time,

Sophy

[oldclaypaws]

Sounds nice and i wish you best of luck with it. The issue you are going to have trouble with isn't so much finding the land, its that old bugbear, planning. While we might all think its a great idea, it is a change of use from agricultural to tourism and it would require a full planning application, with all the delay, cost and unpleasantness of objectionable letters that goes with planning debates. Its likely to be more of a contentious issue in the Southeast, where many people (from experience) start from a Nimby attitude and would hate to see a cluster of 'hippy' types daring to enjoy themselves as they peer suspiciously across the field from their mock Tudor des res. Avoid posh areas and National Parks, its likely to be better received in a pro-tourism area such as the West Country, Wales, West Scotland, etc.

I'd also make sure you draw up some sort of contract with the land owner, otherwise you might put in all the work building up the site, only to find the landowner decides they'll do without you and pocket the lot themselves.

There are some good ideas you can look at here, a glamping booking site; http://www.canopyandstars.co.uk

While its a growing market, its also a very competative one, and the top end expects pretty smartly kitted out accomodation with showers, solar power, nice furniture, etc. I reckon you might need quite a lot of capital to set it all up, a few thousand per Tipi.

[Dexter's Shed]

heres a small plot that would save you renting which in all honesty I think you'll have trouble finding given what you want to do

http://www.woods4sale.co.uk/woodlands/s ... nd/487.htm

[oldclaypaws]

Remember that if its a woodland you want, you'd have to make sure all trees within range of the Tipi's were inspected and deemed safe by a tree surgeon (possibly cored to make sure they weren't diseased), you wouldn't want your guests squashed by a falling bough during the night.

When an area of my wood was used as an official travellers site by the council, all the larger trees close to the caravan pitches were felled to avoid any mishaps. It might seem officious, but we live in a litigation culture and you have to be prepared and insured against the unexpected.

[Sophy]

Hi there,

Thanks very much for your replies and advice.

Yes I do envisage planning permission being a challenge, and is dependent on the area. However, if I am unable to attain planning permission I am looking at opening as a certified site through an outside association able to offer planning permission exemptions. But like I said I am not strictly limited on location so I will be considering venturing further afield.

I am also looking at the possibility of buying a small area of land rather than renting. As you mentioned the arrangement between myself and the land owner has been playing on my mind, and so if I was able to buy a small area of suitable land that may well be a more sensible option to go for. But unfortunately, as with most of these things money is the constraint and so it will be a case of researching to see what I can get for a reasonable price to see if this is feasible.

Oh, and thank you for the advice on getting the trees assessed by a tree surgeon, something I hadn't yet considered and very valid!

Thanks once again,

Sophy

[Dexter's Shed]

in all honesty, I think buying will be your only option,
most people on the swog forum have bought their woods with plans in mind, rather than a renting out option, and then if you did find someone willing to rent, what would the length of the lease be? I'm sure most would only be yearly, then surely all you hard work could be in jeopardy, as someone renting you a plot, seeing it become a success, may think, let the renting period run out, and I'll continue this under my own steam

another thing I see happening, a plot holder that has had no hassle with local's or councils as they have just enjoyed their woods to themselves, would see mounds of paperwork coming in via councils etc, once paying customers appear,

if it all became to much, and you left the plot, they would still be on the radar, and continue to get hassled