Allenbourn Sports Pavillion has Survived!

The Sports Pavillion built at Allenbourn School in Wimborne has survived despite being surrounded by nearly two foot of flood waters.

 

The past few months have seen multiple flood warnings being issued for the River Stour in Dorset. The Environment Agency has consistently been saying flooding has been expected along the Lower Stour from Sturminster Marshall to Christchurch. However, thanks to much work at the design stage the Allenbourn Sports Pavilion has survived. It might be surrounded by up to 2 foot of flood water, but the Log Building which was completed by New Forest Log Cabins in 2011 is standing tall.

When we were asked to work with Architect Gareth Bristow to build a Log Sports Pavilion, little did we know the weather would test the flood defense measures that were key to the long term life of the building. Sales Director for New Forest Log Cabins, John Rudd added that "with many hours of raising and lowering the design and using a series of brick pillars we were able to construct the Sports Pavilion to withstand the threat of flooding, however, this has been put to the test over the recent month of constant flooding of the River Stour that runs nearby".

The Eco Friendly modern School Classrooms designed and built by New Forest Log Cabins can have teaching areas, staff rooms, wet and dry places, kitchens, WC's and utility facilities and offices, along with adequate storage space. With our latest design tools we can create your very own bespoke nursery building. With our extensive experience in providing ideal environments for pre-school children to flourish, you can rest assured that we also incorporate all of the necessary safety and security features for carefree learning and enjoyment.  If you are planning to build a new nursery, we can help you design and then go on to construct a superb new building to your exact specifications, meeting all the regulations from OFSTED and Building Control, please contact us to request an Education Information Pack, or visit our education section to find out more.

Is this the biggest log cabin in Dorset?

NEW FOREST LOG CABINS is undertaking one of the largest log cabin builds in Dorset at Merley House Holiday Park.

This complex will include an indoor swimming pool, sauna area and offices/reception area. The build was started in the late autumn of 2013 and is scheduled to be completed by the end of February 2014, with plans for a special event for the Grand Opening. 

Two artic lorries have already been unloaded with all the components needed to assemble such a large structure, both of which came all the way from Aru Grupp in Estonia. A team from Estonia have been flown over to put the building together literally log by log, the building came with each piece numbered so the workers know in which order to the place the individual logs. Their work ethic has impressed Phil Hammick, Director of Merley House Holiday Park “The lads over from Estonia have worked like Trojans, even when it’s been wet to keep on top of the deliveries of timber that have arrived.”

The logs themselves come pre-treated and waterproof. The building once erected, can be painted in a colour of the client's choice, in the case of Merley House they have chosen to keep a natural wood colour. All the logs work on an interlocking system, so the structure is extremely strong and consequently is very easy and timely to erect.


The Company is registered with the FSC (Forest Stewardship Council), which is part of the Rainforest Alliance.  This Alliance ensures strict guidelines are adhered to with regards to forest management, thus ensuring forest sustainability, which is extremely important to New Forest Log Cabins.

Efficiency and professionalism is something that New Forest Log Cabins prides itself on, aiming to please all our clients. “The project is well underway and ahead of schedule which we at Merley Park are delighted with.” Commented Phil Hammick, “The home owners who are here on the Park cannot believe how quickly it has gone up. In just two weeks the reception first stage roof was on so it was dry indoors.”
To date the Merley Pool House Project is on track for its completion deadline, the external shell of the building is nearly completed, and the plush internal fitting is underway.

NEW FOREST LOG CABINS has been established since 2002 and is renowned for its bespoke and high quality builds. The company can offer a large variety of buildings which can all be designed to the client’s specification. The company has assembled amongst others Chalets, Classrooms for Schools and Nurseries, Pool Houses, Log Cafes and Granny Annexes. We are based in Wimborne, Dorset and are able to offer free, no obligation site visits within a 15 mile radius. We offer a complete service ensuring your project goes smoothly from start to finish. Our service includes drawings for planning, help with your planning requirements and if required, we will fit out the interior of the structure to your individual specifications.

The True Cost of Elderly Care

The UK's Ageing Population Brings Financial Concerns

A few statistics... the UK has an ageing population, currently 10 million people in the UK are over 65 years old. The latest projections are for 5½ million more elderly people in 20 years time and the number will have nearly doubled to around 19 million by 2050. According to the Laing & Buisson market survey the the average cost in England is £532 a week for a residential care home or £750 for a nursing home. This implies average spending of more than £100,000 in a care home and £150,000 in a nursing home.

Naturally this currently puts or will put a lot of people in pressured situations where the cost of care can spiral. 

Some two million elderly people have been forced to dip into their savings to pay for care costs, a survey by a national insurance company has revealed. Research undertaken for the NFU Mutual insurance group shows around a million homes have been sold to cover care costs in the last five years, causing three out of four people whose parents go into care to forego all or most of any financial inheritance from their parents.

The findings suggest more than three quarters (77%) of those whose parents or in-laws had needed residential care had lost out on a significant part of savings that they would otherwise have inherited. Around half claimed their parent’s care bills were met from savings and 28% said the family was forced to sell their parent’s home to pay care costs.

Under current arrangements, anyone with savings of more than £23,250 is forced to pay for their own care.  Recent reforms to raise this financial bar to £75,000 - in line with Oxford economist Andrew Dilnot’s recommendations ­ will not take effect until 2016.

Sean McCann, head of life technical and marketing compliance at NFU Mutual, said: ‘Younger generations could be in for a long wait if they are banking on an inheritance to fund their own retirement.  ‘People should be making their own retirement plans rather than factoring in property and wealth that could be whittled away by the cost of care.’

One solution to this dilemma is to move elderly relatives into your own home, giving them greater independence, saving on nursing care fees and releasing the equity on their own property into the family. Often, however this can mean cramped conditions but consider building separate living quarters within your property grounds. This may sound elaborate and expensive but a Log Cabin Granny Annex, something New Forest Log Cabins specialise in, can be a very cost-effective solution. How do you go about this and what are the costs involved? Please visit our Granny Annex page for further details.

Can Temporary Log Cabin Buildings Address the Urgent Need for Space in Educational Establishments?

By John Rudd

Stephen Twigg, the shadow education secretary, called on George Osborne, the chancellor, to address this "urgent crisis" in his budget. He predicts that pupils will have to be taught in temporary buildings because schools will soon run out of space. In a recent article in The Guardian, Twigg claimed that, over the next few years, the government has promised to fund only an extra 100 schools. These are likely to be free schools - one of the coalition's education reforms.
Official figures show the number of primary age children in the capital is set to soar from 595,000 to 701,000 over the next three to four years, raising the spectre of children having to be taught in school halls, hired buildings and temporary mobile classrooms. Education Secretary Michael Gove hit back by blaming Labour for the crisis, saying that warnings were ignored by the last government until it was too late to avert the problem. Several education authorities are already looking at emergency school accommodation.

New Forest Log Cabins has built school classrooms for many years to meet a whole variety of teaching needs. The company would like to ask readers to consider if the typical example of a temporary classroom is still an acceptable alternative to a purpose build, or custom designed classroom, ICT suite, canteen, sports pavilion or outdoor education centre? If the cost of hiring a temporary log classroom over five years was equivalent to owning outright a classroom that was designed to meet the key needs of your school, we have to ask if this could be considered a better use of the limited funds being given to schools to cope with the ever expanding needs for extra teaching space.

Log cabins are not only a great solution economically, but also environmentally. When considering the Carbon Footprint of your building, wood is both environmentally friendly, energy efficient and performs better than 'traditional' build structures. Wood is a natural material that is both beautiful and tactile and is therefore the first choice for all seasons. It's insulation qualities ensure that heating and air conditioning costs are kept to a minimum, which makes it the ideal material for many types of school buildings. For example, the log cabins built by New Forest Log Cabins have been independently certified and in all cases have exceeded the minimum U-values which can be proven to save schools between 30 - 40% on heating, lighting and cooling.

To find more about how New Forest's log classrooms and buildings can offer a cost effective solution for school's needs, visit New Forest Log Cabins to receive a Log Schools Information Pack and Schools Designs Brochure.

For more information please contact New Forest Log Cabins Tel: 01202 888108

New Forest Log Cabins Industry Update

New Forest Log Cabins are rapidly earning a reputation for leading the industry with innovative building solutions made from log. Last year they launched their first almost ZERO CARBON FOOTPRINT Classroom and today are pleased to announce the completion of the UK's first 20 x 6.8mtr Mobile Home in the New Forest National Park.

John Rudd of New Forest Log Cabins explains: "More and more people are looking for help to find an alternative to brick and mortar as a way of getting on the property ladder and mobile homes have long been considered by many Park Home owners as a suitable alternative, however, these were traditionally only ever designed to last for a couple of decades and needed to be replaced. Log Mobile Homes are now becoming a more attractive alternative and it's not just because of the associated costs. We've developed a range of high quality solid log and Timber Frame Mobile Homes which can be used to provide a secure and versatile home that's made from sustainable materials, is environmentally friendly with very low carbon content and all that at a cost that represents excellent value for money."

John added: "The re-emergence of timber as a building material has occurred as concerns for the environment have grown with timber being a natural product that offers a custom design luxury home with great insulation qualities, low energy heating and ease of maintenance".

For more information go to; http://www.newforestlogcabins.co.uk/index.html

Review of 2010 for New Forest Log

The building year of 2010 was possibly the best year we have ever had and 2011 has already started with several large orders from Schools and commercial buildings. We attribute this success to the fact that New Forest Log Cabins are totally focused on addressing the growing need for tailor made log buildings that meet customer requirements from custom design through to the finished build. Whatever your needs, New Forest Log Cabins are committed to delivering on it's core competency of designing functional and environmentally sound log structures.

Over the past 9 years New Forest Log Cabins have developed a range of high quality Log Buildings, Chalets, Mobile Log Homes, Custom Built Log Cabins and are experiencing a growth in commercial buildings for School Classrooms, Visitor Centres, Sports Pavilions and economic housing for families, young and old.

As part of our heritage in creating innovative log structures we are justly proud of the variety of buildings we have designed and built. This is proving to be a clear differentiators as all the models featuring on our web site unlike many other companies, are real life projects constructed and built by New Forest Log Cabins..!

As we expand our range of designs and log buildings into another busy year we look forward to working with you to create a log building to be proud of at a price that represents excellent value for money and helps us work towards producing extremely Energy Efficient, Low Carbon Footprint structures made from the worlds most natural building materials...

To find out more visit; http://www.newforestlogcabins.co.uk

VAT free Mobile Log Homes

Mobile Log Homes are still VAT Free..!

Beat the first time buyer blues by investing in an economic Log Mobile Home...

If your parents have a large enough garden or space on land to site one of our environmentally friendly log mobile homes, not only will you get an affordable home, but you won’t pay any VAT..

For more information go to; http://www.newforestlogcabins.co.uk/article5.html