We’ve Signed the Lease!
June 2026
After more than two years of negotiations, countless hours of paperwork, and the determination of our incredible community, we are absolutely delighted to announce that Community Workshops & Gardens @ Holme Farm has officially signed our 10-year lease with the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA).
This is a landmark moment for everyone who has ever volunteered, visited, donated, or believed in what Holme Farm can be – a milestone so many people have contributed to.
A Journey Years in the Making
Holme Farm has come a long way since DEFRA handed us the keys to a disused farm in April 2022. What began as an overgrown site has been transformed by the energy and dedication of our volunteers into a thriving community space with allotments, a woodturning workshop, a sensory garden, a meadow, an apiary, and so much more.
The lease negotiation itself has been a marathon. It was Malcolm Cressey who first led this work – we are deeply grateful for everything he did in the early years and hold him in our hearts. When Malcolm’s health meant he had to step back, Martin McEvoy took on the baton with enormous commitment, steering the negotiations alongside our solicitors at Birketts LLP through to the finish line.
We also want to pay tribute to Ronnie and Christine Kendall, who founded and led Holme Farm from its earliest days and gave so much of themselves to bring it to where it is today. Though they stepped back last summer, their legacy is visible in every corner of this site. This signing is in no small part their achievement.
To Martin, Peter, and everyone on the Trustee Board who kept pushing forward through the delays and the complexity: thank you.
Thank You, DEFRA
We want to express our genuine gratitude to DEFRA for their support and patience throughout this process. The team we have worked with has engaged with us constructively and shown real belief in the social value that Holme Farm delivers to the community.
DEFRA’s decision to make this site available to a charity like ours reflects a genuine commitment to community wellbeing and the transformative power of green spaces. We don’t take that lightly.
Thank You to Our Volunteers
None of this would matter without our regular volunteers who show up week after week to work on the allotments, maintain the buildings, tend the land, move forward with our projects and look after one another. You are Holme Farm.
What Comes Next
With the lease signed, we can now move forward with real momentum. Our immediate priorities include submitting our planning application to Runnymede Borough Council for the redevelopment of the site buildings, and continuing to build the evidence of social value that will support our longer-term ambition: securing a 25-year lease or exploring the option to purchase the land outright.
A longer tenure would unlock significantly greater funding opportunities – including potential grants from programmes such as Your Fund Surrey – and give us the platform to realise the full vision for Holme Farm as a permanent community asset.
There is much still to do, and we intend to make the most of every single day of this lease.
