We are working towards bringing The Beeches - a 12-acre property in Bamford, the Peak District - into collective ownership, transforming it into a thriving social centre and ecological sanctuary that helps build belonging, connection and collective power. As a multifunctional venue, we hope The Beeches will provide space for events, retreats, residentials, trainings, organising infrastructure, agroecological food growing, collective healing, dreaming, imagination work, and much more.
“I have come to understand that social transformation (the push for more just systems and policies) and personal transformation (healing our own trauma and reshaping our relationships) have to happen together.”
The property features a large community food garden and a fruit tree orchard nestled within 8 acres of woodland, alongside a spacious field offering open space for events and camping. Just 20 minutes by train from Sheffield, one hour from Manchester, and three hours from London, we are working towards transforming this accessible resource to host residential events for up to 30 people indoors and up to 50 camping. Below, you will find images of the property and further context about its rich history.
Situated 10 miles from Kinder Scout—a site of historical significance for the land justice movement — we’re aiming for The Beeches to become a vital space where groups working across different causes (and the communities they support) can build power, practice new ways of organising, engage in liberatory education, and share struggles, resources, and skills. Our vision is to create an accessible sanctuary for connecting with nature, healing, and respite — especially for those facing everyday violence at the hands of oppressive systems.
We are a growing collective of practitioners and organisations working at the intersection of environmental and social justice, education and youth work, political organising, migrant justice, nature connection, and therapeutic practice.
*“There is no such thing as a single-issue struggle because we do not live single-issue lives.”
We are passionate about creating this much-needed organising infrastructure and place of respite in the heart of the beautiful Peak District; recognising that our justice movements must aspire to achieve transformation across multiple levels - individual, interpersonal, organisational, community, national, international, and spiritual.
We are growing an intergenerational collective of individuals, organisations and local stakeholders to democratically own and manage the property together. In recognising the need to shift power and to help reverse centuries of land enclosures for private gain, we will share decision-making and manage the property collectively.
Many of the groups we work with—including migrant solidarity organisations, youth activists, educators, political movement-builders, and those seeking therapeutic and mental health support—face significant barriers to accessing the benefits of restorative spaces like this due to financial constraints, capacity challenges, and repeated experiences of marginalisation.
Recognising this deep interconnection between all parts of the system and between our social change movements, The Beeches would help our movements engage in pluralistic, intergenerational, and intersectional organising, building healthy power within and across different causes. We aim to break down barriers to collaboration and provide a rural sanctuary for collective liberation, participatory regeneration, and inquiry into today’s intersecting crises.
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This project is part-funded by East Midlands Combined County Authority and the UK Government through the Rural England Prosperity Fund. The grant scheme was administered by High Peak Borough Council.