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About the
Hadlow Estate

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Set in the Weald of Kent, between Tonbridge and Tunbridge Wells, and centred on the village of Tudeley, the Hadlow Estate is a family owned and managed rural business.

The landscape reflects West Kent with arable farmland and orchards, pasture and woodlands. Home to a number of residential properties and businesses, the Estate has a rich heritage and deep-rooted connection to the area.

Our vision, inspired by the history of the Estate, is to play an active role in maintaining and enhancing the land and buildings for future generations, contributing to the local economy and playing a positive role in the community.

We take a rounded approach to the management of the Estate ensuring that it is both financially sustainable and environmentally aware, investing carefully and preserving its legacy. This long-term stewardship is at the heart of our ethos.

The Hadlow Estate
The Hadlow Estate Tractor in orchard
The Hadlow Estate Apples

Examples of the Estate’s involvement in enhancing the local area include:

Community assets

The Hadlow Estate supports various community projects in the local area. Proceeds from the solar park near Five Oak Green have enabled donations to the local Parish Council and Capel Community Association to fund improvements to the Village Hall and contribute towards sports facilities in Five Oak Green.

Flooding

The Hadlow Estate has been involved in a Natural Flood Management (NFM) initiative, working with the South East Rivers Trust on an Environment Agency-funded scheme as part of the Upper Medway flood management programme, in order to mitigate the risk of flooding from the Alder Stream. Leaky Woody Structures were installed in tributaries in the upper catchment area of the Alder Stream. These create temporary barriers to water flow, delaying flood peaks and reducing their height.

Heritage

Thirty per cent of the properties owned by the Estate are listed. The Estate operates a rolling programme of repair and conservation, to maintain and enhance properties while sensitively renovating them to meet contemporary requirements for both residential and commercial tenants.

Woodland and conservation

Almost a quarter of the Estate is woodland and forest. This is a source of timber, including conifers, oak, sweet chestnut and willow. The Estate and farm are involved in a range of stewardship schemes for heathland regeneration and to maintain wild field margins for wildlife and wild bird seed plots. This commitment to conservation has manifested as a long-standing partnership with the RSPB at Pembury Woods: 850 acres of Estate woodland is managed there as a nature reserve.

Renewable energy

In 2014, a 64-acre 19MW solar farm was commissioned on Estate land adjacent to the Tonbridge-Paddock Wood railway. This now generates enough energy annually to power over 5,000 homes in the local area. Solar panels have been placed on the farm buildings at Hadlow Place Farm generating the electricity required to run the cold stores and farm buildings, and exporting to the grid. Estate timber is harvested to supply a small district heating system of 199 KW at Hadlow Place Farm.

The Hadlow Estate Tudeley

Hadlow Estate in numbers:

11

There are 11 miles of toll ride farm tracks around the Estate

50

Acres of Estate land restored to heathland near Pembury

64

Acreage of the Solar Park, brought forward by the Estate with British Solar Renewables in 2014, generating 19 MW of power, enough for over 5,000 homes a year

200

Acreage of orchards on the Estate

1,100

More than 1,100 species of fungi have been found at the Tudeley Woods Nature Reserve, managed in conjunction with the RSPB

20 – 24 million

Apples grown on the Estate each year