New East Yorkshire den to revive playtime of yesteryear

Now one couple from East Yorkshire are bringing back the past for modern children with an innovative new play offer called William’s Den in the heart of the countryside.

Christian and Tor Carver were originally inspired by the annual Open Farm Sunday events and began thinking what they could do to create somewhere for children to visit on their arable farm in North Cave.

Tor explained: “We renovated some holiday cottages in 2010 and after talking to our guests, we realised there wasn’t a good outdoor play area in the local area. We also understood that if guests stay for a few days, then they want several places to visit and sometimes that wasn’t always possible when they had children as choice was limited.”

So the couple decided to build a new kind of play experience, bringing the outside in and vice-versa so that it can be used year-round.

Christian was already running the family’s estate and decided Castle Farm, situated just off the A1034, was the perfect location.

Tor said: “We were inspired by teaching methods in Denmark and Italy where they encourage outdoor learning in all weathers, that’s what we want to recreate here.”

The new venture comprises two main buildings, one of which will house play equipment and feature floor to ceiling windows and a large barn-style door which will give children access to roam outside and let fresh air in.

The play barn floor will be undulating and the equipment will be a combination of multi-level play zones and natural products and materials that children can use to create their own play spaces and dens.

The second is a renovated brick and stone agricultural building and will house the 80-seater restaurant and kitchen.

“We want children to have the childhood experiences that we were lucky enough to have, to build dens with natural materials, to climb, and just enjoy being outside in the fresh air,” said Tor. “I read somewhere recently, that when we were younger, our parents would let us play for hours unsupervised up to a few miles from home, whereas nowadays that distance is more likely to be no more than three metres from mum. This is so sad, as children must be missing out on so much. Our aim is to create spaces where they can play freely and safely while having fun learning and playing outdoors and indoors.”

The couple have been supported by East Riding Council and Visit Hull and East Yorkshire, but have self-funded the build for the new venture.

The new building utilises innovative building materials such as hemp block walls, wood fibre insulation and recycled glass insulation blocks.

Christian said: “We have used sustainable materials and recycled materials wherever possible and included other features such as a biomass boiler plant, a rainwater harvest system for the toilets and solar panels on the roof. This means the building should be well-insulated and it’s been designed to absorb the sound by using wood wool boards.”

While the couple are keeping exact details of the equipment that will be inside the building secret, they are keen to stress it will be different from anything families can see elsewhere.

Christian said: “All the indoor play equipment is bespoke and hand-made by British crafts people. It’s made from natural materials or recycled materials wherever possible.”

Tor added: “There will be no soft play, plastic items, ball pools or bright colours. The building will have lots of windows that children can see out of, lots of natural light and fresh air circulating.”

As well as the play barn, the new venture will have a restaurant with a wood-fired pizza oven, homemade ice cream and a shop. William’s Den opens in spring 2017.