Roves Farm

Roves Farm is a beloved, family-run visitor centre in Sevenhampton, just outside Swindon. As a local attraction, it’s the perfect place for families to explore, and let kids play freely. Boasting a mix of animals, a spacious café, and sprawling acres of land, the farm has always had incredible space for a large outdoor play.

The collaboration began naturally. Ed, one of our Sales Managers, had been visiting Roves Farm with his own children for years and noticed that some of the older play equipment was being retired and cordoned off. Recognising an opportunity to help, Ed approached the owners to see how we could help increase their outdoor offerings. They sat down together to understand their objectives, challenges, and what they hoped to achieve.

Their primary objective was to get visitors moving around the farm. On busy days, crowds tended to cluster heavily around the main barn. However, space is something Roves Farm has in abundance. The owners wanted to inspire families to venture further into the fields and explore their scenic nature walk. This trail became the ideal location for a bespoke timber play trail. By including play equipment directly into the landscape, we created an interactive journey where exploration and active play seamlessly come together.

Following our detailed site visits, our design team got to work transforming these ideas into reality using realistic 3D renders. We provide these mock-ups for every project, as they are the perfect way to bring conversations to life and ensure everyone is aligned. Once we received the official go-ahead, it was all systems go; the project was booked in, and our workshop began hand-crafting the new timber equipment.

Play trails make a fantastic addition to any attraction because they combine a wide variety of activities, effectively creating an exciting obstacle course where children can challenge themselves or race their friends. For Roves Farm, we designed a series of trails that included Monkey Bars, Gym Bars, Climbing Trees, a Zig-Zag Balance Beam, a Rock Ladder Combo, a Horizontal Net Bridge, an Inclined Balance Beam, and Stepping Stones.

Because the trail is integrated into the nature walk, we used grass mats for the safety surfacing. This practical choice allows the natural grass to grow through, keeping the area looking beautifully green. Finally, to ensure children of all ages were catered for, in the main play area, we added single and double swing bays with commercial flat swings, toddler and a nest swing.