Ullswater

WISH YOU WERE HERE

Posted on August 3, 2023

WISH YOU WERE HERE

Snapshots from The Quiet Site in The Lake District...

The Quiet Site has scooped gold at this year’s VisitEngland Awards for Excellence 2023, having been named the top Camping, Glamping and Holiday Park of the Year. The Cumbrian destination boasts a stunning location in the fells overlooking Ullswater, first opened its doors to campers and caravanners 60 years ago.

Over the past two decades sustainability has been the site’s focus, with both business and investment choices based on a desire to be fully sustainable which has resulted in the site becoming one of the greenest holiday parks in the UK.

The Quiet Site is a multi-award-winning carbon neutral holiday park, consisting of several accommodation options including a self-catering holiday cottage, luxury Glamping Cabins, timber Camping Pods, underground Glamping Burrows and carbon positive Gingerbread Houses.

In addition, it offers all-weather tent pitches and hard standing pitches for caravans and motorhomes. The site’s facilities include a historic pub, a zero-waste shop, pizzeria and creperie, games room and lots more. Daniel Holder, Managing Director of The Quiet Site said: “We are over the moon to have been awarded this most prestigious recognition by Visit Britain.

“Our team works tirelessly to provide guests with both the best and the most sustainable stay possible, reflected in the fact that 84% of our bookings come from repeat stays or recommendations. “We hope to welcome both returning and new guests for many years to come.”

The Quiet Site
Tel. 01768 486337
Email. info@thequietsite.co.uk
www.thequietsite.co.uk

AWARD-WINNERS

Posted on August 2, 2022

AWARD-WINNERS

We visit Southwaite Green Mill in the Lake District...

EACH OF THE 60 PARK HOMES in-situ has its own private drive and garden

 

The Lake District’s award-winning residential park Southwaite Green Mill Country Park has an interesting backstory. Originally a Corn Mill which ceased production in the 1950s, Southwaite Green Mill was then owned by the Bardgett Family who ran a caravan site in its picturesque grounds on the outskirts of the market town of Penrith. Another local family, the Heaths, who were well-known in the caravan trade having run Lakeland Caravans for several generations, purchased Southwaite Green Mill in 1973. Jill Heath takes up the story: “My husband’s father John used to site and sell caravans in the local area and the Bardgett family was one of his clients,” explains Jill.

 

“After taking ownership of the park, our family continued to operate the site as a caravan holiday park, alongside developing a fish farming business that continued until the early 1990s.” In 1994, the Heaths purchased a plot of land from Lowther Estates that lies behind the original park and decided to develop Southwaite Green Mill as a residential park. “We had noticed that residential parks were starting to become more popular in the southern parts of the UK,” says Jill. “But there didn’t seem to be many developments in the north, so we set upon making our own.” At first, the Heaths thought that their new residential park would attract potential residents from elsewhere in the country who wished to retire in the beautiful surroundings of the Lake District.

 

THE HEATH FAMILY work closely with their preferred supplier Stately. Pictured in the foreground, a Stately Carolina Lodge.

 

Southwaite Green Mill is superbly located alongside the scenic River Eamont, just a few minutes’ drive from England’s second largest lake, Ullswater. Instead, Jill explains, they were inundated with enquiries from local residents. “We were really surprised by the amount of local interest. Our aim was to create a nice, village-type environment for the over 50s with private homes and gardens that didn’t require too much upkeep. “We expected people who had perhaps visited the area on holiday to enquire but in the end, many of our residents are people who have lived in the Lakes for a number of years. It makes for a lovely atmosphere here, a real home from home.”

Southwaite Green Mill currently has 60 park homes in-situ. Each of the homes has its own private drive and garden. Most of the plots also have space for a garage subject to local planning. All of the homes have underground piped LPG, metered electric, and mains water services. Great emphasis has been placed on ensuring the residents’ security and peace of mind. The park has electronic entry gates, and its careful landscaping has, in part, led to the park being honoured with the David Bellamy Gold Conservation Award. Such is the success of the park that Jill and John Heath and their family are currently working on the second phase of Southwaite Green Mill, which will comprise an additional 40 homes when completed.

 

FLOWERS IN BLOOM at Southwaite Green Mill.

 

The new ‘Watersedge’ development will be phased in gradually over the next few years. The first row of plots, which offers the added attraction of lovely river views, is the first area under development. “The market is pretty buoyant at the moment and there’s been a lot of interest in the new homes,” says Jill. “Recently we had a unit sold on the park within just two weeks!” Timescales for completion are dependent not only on sales but on manufacturers’ ability to fulfil orders for residential homes.

 

 

Jill says that their close working relationship with preferred supplier Stately has ensured that Southwaite Green Mill is ahead of the game. “The industry has seen order dates being pushed back due to the pandemic,” explains Jill, “but we thought ahead and booked manufacturing slots in advance with Stately which has enabled us to be more responsive to customer orders. We work with a number of different manufacturers according to each home-owners wishes but we have always found Stately in particular to offer great quality building and furniture, as well as excellent after sales.”

 

GREAT EMPHASIS has been placed on ensuring the residents’ security and peace of mind.

 

Jill and John Heath have two sons and two daughters who are all involved in the running of Southwaite Green Mill, as well as its sister park, Hillcroft, in nearby Pooley Bridge. The family acquired Hillcroft Park in 2012 and have developed it into a multi award-winning holiday park, covering over 50 acres of land and including 200+ privately owned luxury lodges and holiday homes, as well as traditional camping pitches, pods, glamping, and two fully-equipped, self-catering cottages and a large house in the heart of the lakeside village.

 

THE NEW WATERSEDGE development will comprise an additional 40 homes and is situated next to the picturesque River Eamont.

 

There’s no doubt that Southwaite Green Mill and Hillcroft Park owe much of their success to having such a superb location in the heart of the Lakes, but personal service has a lot to say for their continued popularity. The fact that Southwaite Green Mill is a family owned and family run park is an added attraction to potential home owners and an asset to residents. Jill and John lived in the old Mill House on site for more than 20 years and like nothing more than stopping by to have a chat with their old neighbours. Such is their commitment to residents that Jill can even be found chipping in and driving their weekly private minibus service into Penrith on Mondays!

 

CARBON BUSTERS

Posted on February 16, 2022

CARBON BUSTERS

Leading holiday parks share their green credentials…

 

THE QUIET SITE is located near the shores of Ullswater in picture-perfect Lake District countryside

 

When it comes to combating climate change, the holiday park industry stands loud and proud above most other sectors when it comes to carbon neutral investment.
Before you undertake your carbon footprint assessment, there are some outstanding examples from our peers who are putting their green credentials into action.
You will be well advised to follow their example and add your eco-friendly performance to this year’s marketing themes as customers love nothing more than investing in a planted-friendly holiday.
For instance, The Quiet Site, a family’s holiday park on Ullswater, in the Lake District, has been celebrated at the recent COP26 climate change conference for its fight against global warming.
The park, in Pooley Bridge, was highly commended for its carbon neutral initiatives, and hailed as a Hero of Net Zero at the UN conference’s awards ceremony. The award is part of the Together For Our Planet campaign which recognises original and creative actions taken by small businesses to cut their own greenhouse gas emissions.
Park owner Daniel Holder and his family travelled to the COP26 awards ceremony to receive the judges’ commendation from Andrew Griffith MP.

 

 

CLIMATE HUB
More than 160 businesses entered the competition, making a commitment at the UK Business Climate Hub to achieve net zero by 2050, in line with the Government’s own climate commitment.
The Quiet Site was highly commended in the small business category for demonstrating a range of measures taken on their journey to net zero. These included prioritising nature by planting wildflower meadows and native trees, building accommodation that generates more energy than it uses, and opening a zero-waste shop.
“All businesses need to become Heroes of Net Zero if the world is going to have an impact on climate change,” said Daniel.
“Our journey has been fascinating, bringing technologies and techniques together in a unique energy mix to enable us to be carbon neutral.
“We started introducing sustainable practices twenty years ago, not because we wanted to save the world but because the initiatives we introduced were based on elegant engineering and made good business sense.
“Our focus is now to enable our customers to visit us without using private cars. Great holidays don’t have to cost the earth,” added Daniel.
The Quiet Site won over the competition judges by not only reducing its own energy consumption and environmental impact, but also encouraging customers to be more environmentally friendly.

 

DEVON-BASED COFTON HOLIDAYS has been recognised for its rewilding efforts.

 

QUEEN’S AWARD
The business provides quality holidays in the heart of the Lake District, offering pitches for tents, camping, motorhomes and a variety of glamping options. Earlier this year, the park became Britain’s first holiday park to win a Queen’s Award for sustainability which was presented by Her Majesty’s Lord- Lieutenant of Cumbria, Claire Hensmen.
Not to be outshone, multi award- winning South West holiday park Cofton Holidays has scooped the Environment and Sustainability award at the Western Morning News Business Awards 2021, recognising its sustained conservation efforts during the pandemic.
Set within 80 acres of glorious Devon countryside, Cofton Holidays has been a family-run holiday park for over 40 years. Guests return year after year to enjoy its beautiful and convenient location, extensive facilities and wide choice of accommodation types for all the family.
Visitors to Cofton can choose from a range of holiday homes, cottages and lodges in the heart of the main park, or cottages and apartments on the estuary-view Eastdon Estate. Cofton also offers a choice of pitches for touring caravan holidays including hard- standing and RV pitches.
Cofton Holidays offers a variety of accommodation to suit all guests including luxury lodges, dog-friendly cottages, Georgian-style apartments, modern holiday homes and camping and caravanning pitches. Facilities include an indoor pool heated by a biomass hub with a splash pad area and hydrotherapy loungers, a gym, restaurant, pub, steam room, sauna, fitness studio, soft play area, playground, sports wall, outdoor pools and much more.
Guests also have access to five coarse fishing lakes, miles of cycle paths and nature trails that take visitors through woodland to the golden sands of Dawlish Warren beach and nature reserve.
Sustainability and green initiatives have always been at the top of the agenda for Cofton Holidays, but its rewilding project really took of during the pandemic. With 20 years’ worth of David Bellamy Conservation Awards under their belts, the team saw lockdown as the perfect opportunity to give the park back to Mother Nature.

 

WINNING THE ENVIRONMENT and Sustainability Business Award has been a fabulous achievement for the Cofton team.

 

REWILDING PROJECT
Enhancing the park’s carefully considered planting, extensive woodland, wildlife-friendly hedges, wildflower zones and on-site bug and bee hotel, Cofton has planted additional hedges, shrubs and trees to strengthen wildlife corridors across the site, bringing nature to the doorstep of its visitors. Wild deer, buzzards, butterflies, hedgehogs and a range of fascinating migrating birds can all be spotted thanks to the biodiversity on site. As well as planting perennial flora to attract more insects and pollinators, new hedges provide enhanced nesting environments and food for a variety of birds and bats.
A further scheme that gave Cofton the edge over its competitors is its £60,000 investment in 16 electric car charging points. No other business in the South West has more electric vehicle charging points in one location.
Added to that, Cofton has invested in 144kw of solar power units for the park’s 12 luxury lodges, an electric vehicle for housekeeping, an outdoor lighting review, and the planting of 36 mature trees, making it one of the region’s leading sustainable holiday parks.
Helen Scott, Director at Cofton Holidays, is thrilled with Cofton’s success: “Winning the Environment and Sustainability Award at this year’s Western Morning News Business Awards is a fabulous achievement for us.
“It’s testament to the hard work the team have put into our sustainable initiatives this year, and strengthens our reputation as a holiday park that puts the environment at the forefront of all that we do.”

 

DEVON-BASED Cofton Holidays has been recognised for its rewilding efforts.

 

MOTHER NATURE
Helen continued: “Throughout lockdown, we concentrated all our efforts on making improvements to the park. It was the perfect opportunity to enhance the natural landscape whilst our guests were away, ready for them to marvel at Mother Nature’s handy work once they returned.
“Our sustainability efforts have been recognised by a number of award bodies now including iTravel, VisitEngland and VisitDevon, but this is by no means the end to our investment in green initiatives.
“We will continue to nurture our local environment, fulfilling our sustainability commitment with plans to review our outdoor lighting to reduce light pollution overspill, investing in more charging units for guests staying at the cottages and participating in the tree planting scheme which will celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in 2022.
“As the recent climate change summit, COP26, has highlighted, it’s more important now than ever before that businesses take responsibility for operating in a sustainable way that will protect the environment for future generations. We take this seriously at Cofton and will continue to do all that we can to protect our beautiful corner of South Devon.”

 

 

CARBON BUSTING
Skelwith Fold, an Ambleside holiday park, has cut the green ribbon on a new office complex which can generate all of its own energy – and still have some to spare.
The 3,000 square foot building adjoins the park’s existing offices and has been designed for total self- sufficiency, powering everything from air-conditioning to espresso machines.
Its secret is a bank of high-efficiency solar panels on the roof which will deliver up to 14 kWh per day, even under the gloomiest winter skies.
Skelwith Fold’s Henry Wild says the two-storey complex has taken the park a huge step closer to its goal of achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2024:”We wanted to see if we could make the building entirely carbon neutral, and found this was possible by using the latest solar technology to generate electricity.

 

SUSTAINABILITY AND GREEN initiatives have always been at the top of the agenda for Cofton Holidays.

 

“Even in use seven days a week, the building will still produce surplus power to harness elsewhere on the park and further reduce our reliance on fossil fuels. With the help of other solar panels elsewhere on the park, we are nearing our goal of all our buildings being self-sufficient in energy.
“I also hope that within two years we will create a state of carbon neutrality, and guests will be able to enjoy totally green holidays, even after their journey by car to the park is taken into account.”
The new building’s sustainable credentials are further enhanced by the use in its construction of recycled timber from larch trees grown in the park’s 130-acre grounds.
Skelwith Fold was forced to fell more than 200 larches last year after the Forestry Commission found them to be suffering from a fungal plant disease called Phytophthoras. Many of the areas left by the trees are now subject to an ambitious rewilding scheme.

COMPANY CONTACTS

Cofton Holidays
www.coftonholidays.co.uk

Skelwith Fold
www.skelwith.com

The Quiet Site
www.thequietsite.co.uk

ECO REWARDS

Posted on October 28, 2021

ECO REWARDS

 

ACQUIRING THE SITE 20 YEARS AGO, 55,00 visitors a year are attracted to the Ullswater location.

 

First UK holiday park is awarded sustainability Queen’s Award…

A family-run Cumbrian resort has become the first holiday park to win a Queen’s Award for sustainability.
The Quiet Site in Watermillock is located near the shores of Ullswater where “green tourism” has been on the agenda for over 30 years.
The Queen’s Award for Enterprise in Sustainable Development highlights Britain’s most environmentally responsible businesses.
Daniel Holder and his son George have been presented with a certifcate signed by The Queen and the Prime Minister, and a crystal glass vase. The Quiet Site is also now permitted to fly the Queen’s Award flag for the next five years.

 

HER MAJESTY’S LORD-LIEUTENANT OF CUMBRIA, Claire Hensmen presents the trophy to park owner Daniel Holder.

 

PROUD MOMENT

“This is an immensely proud moment for us, and a fantastic spur to our efforts to allow people to enjoy this beautiful region without creating a negative impact,” said Daniel.
“Cumbria’s economy relies heavily on tourism to support businesses and provide jobs, and we believe this needn’t be inconsistent with protecting the natural world.
“For example, we have invested heavily in sustainable technologies over the years, including solar panels and biomass heating, as well as banning single-use plastics.
“We also operate a very popular “zero waste” food shop specialising in Cumbrian produce free from unnecessary packaging, and with the fewest possible food miles under its belt.
“The Quiet Site’s holiday homes, including our underground Hobbit Holes, are highly insulated, extremely energy effcient, and built from sustainable materials.
“At the same time they provide an exciting and memorable alternative to traditional holiday accommodation, and are especially loved by young families.
“Hopefully we are also sending out the message that, by making even minor adjustments to our lives, it’s possible to make a real difference to our environmental impact,” said Daniel.
Since acquiring the park 20 years ago as a simple camping field, Daniel and his wife Anne have created one of the Lake District’s most celebrated parks.
The Quiet Site is attracting 55,000 visitors annually. As well as its 15 Hobbit Holes stays, the park offers 15 camping pods, 15 glamping cabins, holiday cottages and 60 pitches for motorhomes and tents.
Innovative accommodation, marketed as Gingerbread Houses, are new to The Quiet Site for 2021. The 15 units produce more energy than they use so have a positive effect on their environment.

THE QUIET SITE boasts a new zero waste shop.

 

POSITIVE IMPACT

“Holidays should not cost the earth,” emphasises Daniel. “Our hugely popular Hobbit Holes were the starting point in our thinking.
“Gingerbread Houses boast all that works well in a Hobbit Hole being simple, warm and comfortable, with a large, covered deck and private facilities.
“To this we have added a full-size shower, a simple kitchen and the ability to generate its own power. Heating is provided by a remote ground source heat pump and electricity is generated from their solar PV panel roofs,” explains Daniel.

15 GINGERBREAD houses on the site generate more energy than they use.

“The simplicity of this accommodation and lack of soft furnishings lends itself to an ease of cleaning and fogging that makes it incredibly safe,” he continues.
“They will be wrapped in a lovely beach hedge so will become virtually invisible – unless you know where to look! These hedges will become vital to helping our site become more biodiverse.”
Last year, The Quiet Site scooped another major national green accolade when it took a silver in the finals of the VisitEngland Awards for Excellence in the sustainable tourism category.

The Quiet Site
Tel. 01768486337
www.thequietsite.co.uk

Triple Treat For Cumbria Tourers

Posted on January 13, 2016

Triple Treat For Cumbria Tourers

Castlerigg (pictured) is one of three lakes to offer new breaks.

Castlerigg (pictured) is one of three lakes to offer new breaks.

Three of Cumbria’s most celebrated lakes are shortly to be joined up for the benefit of campervan owners seeking a totally immersive holiday experience.
Ullswater, Derwentwater and Windermere are all combined in a three night lake-lovers break which has been created by a trio of multi-award winning parks; The Quiet Site, Park Cliffe and Castlerigg.
For just £60.00 all-in, guests will be able to awake each morning to different views of spectacular lake and mountain scenery made world famous by poets and artists.
The deal, say the parks, will not just save money but also ensure that holidaymakers get the most from their short breaks by enjoying the best seats in the house.
The three independent parks hope that their lake lovers’ dream tour will meet with the same success as another initiative they launched two years ago for cyclists.
Called Pod ‘n’ Pedal the break provides camping pod accommodation for one night on each park as guests follow a 70-mile route on mainly quite country lanes through the Lake District.