Big Wood Estate

What Big Wood Estate does

Big Wood Estate is a chemical-free regenerative demonstration farm operating from Ardenrun Farm in Lingfield, Surrey, England, founded approximately 22 years ago by Kate Bigwood. The estate integrates food production with ecological restoration through agri-rewilding, soil regeneration, tree planting, wetland restoration, and hedgerow reintroduction, and positions itself simultaneously as a working farm, carbon demonstrator, and living classroom. It supports biodiversity outcomes including IUCN Red List species habitat, turtle dove conservation through Operation Turtle Dove, and wetland creation for water birds, dragonflies, and barn owls, while participating in the Eden for Nature cluster to build wildlife corridors linking to Surrey Hills and Kent Wield AONBs.

The business operates four primary revenue streams: ticketed events sold through Eventbrite (ranging from £15 bat walks to £80 retreat days), paid corporate CSR days focused on October–March tree planting (with named customers including Kia and Aviva), curriculum-linked school visits (both paid and fully funded for eligible schools), and direct agricultural product sales of ethically reared chicken, eggs, and beef. Distribution is direct: event tickets via Eventbrite, corporate enquiries via email, and school bookings via website form. The estate employs 9 people, is privately held and bootstrapped with no external investors, and is GDPR-compliant. It partners with Surrey Wildlife Trust, Natural England, the Environment Agency, South East River Trust, SES Water, and The Harmony Project to deliver educational programming and farmer training.

In 2025–2026 the estate spun off its educational activities into a separate registered charity, the Big Wood Sanctuary for Learning, to advance education and health through teaching about food, farming, nature, and health. The estate serves four primary customer segments — schools and educational groups, corporate organisations seeking ESG-aligned CSR, individuals and families attending events, and farmers and land managers attending workshops — all concentrated in Southeast England with no public footprint claim.

Name

Big Wood Estate

Legal name

The Big Wood Estate

Website

https://bigwoodestate.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Big Wood Estate is a chemical-free regenerative demonstration farm in Surrey, England, offering corporate CSR tree-planting days, curriculum-linked school visits, ticketed nature events, and direct farm product sales, serving schools, corporates, individuals, and farmers across Southeast England.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Lingfield

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Event Ticketing: The estate hosts seasonal events including guided walks, workshops, retreats, bat walks, and performances that are sold via Eventbrite at varying price points (£15-£80 per ticket). Some events are free while others are ticketed.
2. Corporate CSR Days: Corporate organisations pay to bring teams for practical conservation work during the October-March tree planting season. Teams contribute to pre-planned ecological projects including native woodland creation, hedgerow establishment, and wetland reinforcement planting.
3. Educational School Visits: Schools and educational groups pay for tailored outdoor learning experiences. Primary-aged groups are the primary target, with flexible group sizes. The estate offers both paid visits and a limited number of fully funded visits for schools that may not otherwise access outdoor learning.
4. Agricultural Product Sales: The estate produces ethically reared chicken, eggs, and beef from their cattle. Kate Bigwood mentions selling piglets at £65 each (though notes pig farming is not economically sustainable long-term). Products are sold directly from the farm.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Big Wood Estate is a chemical-free, regenerative demonstration farm that combines food production with ecological restoration, operating as a living classroom. It sells educational programs for schools, corporate CSR days, seasonal ticketed events, and directly farmed products (chicken, eggs, beef), while showcasing carbon sequestration through soil regeneration, tree planting, and wetland restoration.

Product overview

Big Wood Estate is a chemical-free, regenerative demonstration farm offering a portfolio of products and services centred on ecological restoration, education, and community engagement. The core offering is the working farm itself, which serves as a living classroom demonstrating carbon sequestration, agri-rewilding, and sustainable food production. Education programmes for schools connect children with nature through hands-on outdoor learning aligned with the National Curriculum. The newly launched Big Wood Sanctuary for Learning (2026) is a registered charity expanding these educational missions. Volunteer programmes offer specialist roles in wildlife surveying and ecological monitoring. Corporate Social Responsibility days provide team tree-planting experiences during winter months (October-March). A seasonal events programme includes nature walks, bat walks, retreat days, and farming workshops. Estate exploration through public footpaths allows visitors to experience woodland, wetlands, and wildlife habitats.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Big Wood Sanctuary for Learning: A separate charity established by the estate to advance education, promote health and wellbeing by teaching about food, farming, nature and health whilst helping local people of all ages to meaningfully connect to nature and healthy living.

Quantifiable outcome

• IUCN Red List species habitat support
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core, secondary and minor.

• Eden for NaturecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBig Wood Estate is an integral member of the Eden for Nature farm cluster, which aims to re-establish nature corridors across the entire landscape and create links to Surrey Hills and Kent Wield AONBs. The cluster facilitates collaborative landscape-scale conservation work among local farms and landowners.
• Surrey Wildlife TrustcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates with Surrey Wildlife Trust on events and programs, including the Protecting Water practical actions for farmers event. Partnership focuses on habitat protection, species monitoring, and landowner education.
• South East River TrustsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerSpeaking partner at farmer education events on water protection and watercourse management. Contributes expertise on river and waterway stewardship.
• Natural EnglandsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment partner contributing to farmer education events on available funding schemes and regulatory guidance for environmental land management.
• The Environment AgencysecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegulatory partner presenting at farmer events on water management permissions, consents for ordinary watercourses, and leaky woody dam installations.
• SES WaterminorGTM or Marketing PartnerWater company partner presenting at farmer events on funding opportunities for water protection initiatives.
• KiaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate partner that has participated in winter tree planting CSR days at the estate, contributing to woodland and hedgerow establishment projects.
• AvivaminorGTM or Marketing PartnerInsurance company that has participated in corporate volunteer days supporting conservation work and tree planting on the estate.
• Wildlife AidminorOthersWildlife rescue organisation to which the estate provides sanctuary. Received tawny owls from Wildlife Aid that needed a home.
• The Harmony ProjectcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBig Wood Estate's educational approach is shaped by involvement in The Harmony Project, which places wellbeing, nature connection, and systems thinking at the heart of education. The estate is licensed to deliver Harmony Project-aligned learning programmes.
• Big Wood Sanctuary for LearningcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerA charitable foundation established by Kate Bigwood with the goal of advancing education, promoting health and wellbeing through teaching about food, farming, nature and health, and helping local people connect to nature and healthy living. Operates from the estate.
• Operation Turtle DovesecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerConservation partnership to encourage turtle doves to spread to the area. Big Wood Estate places specific food to attract turtle doves as part of species recovery efforts alongside other farms in the Edenbridge area.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Daylesford Organic: Established organic/regenerative farming brand in the Cotswolds with on-farm retail, events, and educational programming, demonstrating commercial scale around regenerative principles.
• Knepp Estate: Large-scale rewilding estate in West Sussex combining conservation, regenerative land use, and visitor experiences including safaris and glamping. Most directly comparable UK estate on rewilding + commercial visitor model.
• Shovelstroon Farm / Riverford Organic: Major organic farming operation with farm visits, school engagement, and educational content — relevant at scale for the regenerative-agriculture + education combination.

Regional players

• Sussex Wildlife Trust: Adjacent county wildlife trust offering school visits, corporate volunteering, and land management events on a comparable model.
• Surrey Wildlife Trust: Regional conservation body operating nature reserves, education programmes, and volunteer networks across Surrey — overlapping with Big Wood's educational and conservation remit.

Direct peers

• The Community Farm: Community-supported regenerative farm in Bristol combining chemical-free food production, education, and community engagement events.
• The Allerton Project: Research and demonstration farm in Leicestershire focused on regenerative agriculture, farmland biodiversity, and farmer training — strong operational analogue.
• FarmED: Regenerative agriculture demonstration and education centre near Stratford-upon-Avon running farmer training, school visits, and events — a near-direct operating analogue.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@TheBigwoodEstate
• Facebookfacebook.com/TheBigWoodEstate
• Instagraminstagram.com/thebigwoodestate
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/big-wood-estate

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Big Wood Estate