Barn, café and restaurant terrace among plans for revamp of Birdworld
NEW plans show what a major family attraction on the SurreyHampshire border near Farnham may look like if proposals are approved.
This includes a vibrant eightmetre entrance, an indoor play barn with party rooms and a café, and a modern new garden centre that will be built next door with a restaurant terrace.
The owners of Birdworld and Haskins’ Forest Lodge Garden Centre revealed they wanted to revamp the outdated site in November 2023. A detailed application has since been submitted to East Hampshire District Council that shows how the reshaped and renovated site hopes to become a year-round destination and grow as an education hub.
The project is understood to be planned in three phases that will include building and demolition work. The Birdworld and garden centre sites will be linked via an internal roundabout that splits two car parks, but means the two venues can be accessed from a single three-arm roundabout on the A325 for improved road safety.
It was previously reported there would be a fresh entrance plaza space with displays and exhibitions at Birdworld. This entrance will be relocated from its existing position to a central focal point on the site behind what is currently the Forest Lodge Garden Centre. The Forest Lodge centre is planned to be demolished at a later stage.
The new entrance building will display the Birdworld logo on an eight-metre structure above 4.5-metre gates, according to plans. This will be connected to a building that will house the ticket office, gift shop and toilets, as well as office space.
A new Birdworld play barn is set to be built on what is currently an overflow car park and will be on a visitor’s right when the new entrance building is in use. It will match the entrance’s eight-metre overall height and be built in Phase One of the work.
The play barn will primarily be geared towards children aged up to 12 and include an indoor play area, four party rooms, and a café.
Documents say visitors will be able to access the play barn from the existing Birdworld entrance.
Outdoor adventure play areas will make use of a wooded area close to the play barn that is currently not accessible to the public. A detailed layout of the play area is yet to be confirmed.
A new garden centre based on existing Haskins locations will be built in Phase Two of the development, as well as roadworks and the construction of the garden centre car park. The centre will be at the south of the site on what is currently the back of Birdworld.
The new garden centre will have indoor and outdoor sales areas and a servery and restaurant with an outside terrace for seating in good weather. It is hoped this will be able to serve from 9am until 5pm and was deemed crucial to the success of a modern garden centre.
The restaurant will be bigger than the one at the current garden centre with space for 470 people – up from 260. There will also be a private dining area or meeting room.
Phase Three of the development will see the existing Forest Lodge Garden Centre demolished to allow the new Birdworld entrance and car park to be built. There will be an overall increase in parking of nearly 190 spaces to 840.
The layout will have a number of looping paths that guide guests past bird enclosures and new attractions.
The existing entrance building will be retained and the restaurant will remain but the gift shop will be repurposed to be used as an education hub.
Documents said the park should be viewed as a valuable cultural, educational, and environmental facility as well as a leisure attraction.