How we are building a
Sustainable

Our mission at Wold Escapes is to offer our guests and students an unforgettable, eco-friendly escape surrounded by the natural beauty of the Yorkshire Wolds.

Our approach goes beyond reducing the environmental impact of our accommodation. Working alongside our owners, JSR Farms, we are helping to restore habitats, support wildlife and care for the countryside for future generations.

Whether you’re unwinding in a private hot tub in one of our glamping cabins or our farmhouse, exploring the scenic countryside or attending one of our cookery courses, you can relax knowing your visit to us supports a sustainable future.

Our sustainable commitments:

Our work includes:

• Generating renewable electricity through solar panels
• Using air-source heat pumps to heat our glamping cabins and hot tubs
• Reducing energy use through LED lighting, timers and heating schedules
• Restoring habitats with the JSR Farms ecology team
• Creating and managing wildflower meadows
• Planting native trees and hedgerows
• Providing nesting boxes for owls, kestrels and bats
• Supporting food producers and independent businesses
• Reusing natural materials on the farm such as the willow privacy borders and picnic seating using fallen trees and branches
• Offering accessible accommodation and cookery school facilities
• Providing electric vehicle charging and secure cycle storage
• Giving our guests exclusive access to countryside walks around the farm

We are continually looking for practical ways to reduce the amount of energy we use and generate more of our own electricity from renewable sources.

Our farmhouse has had roof-mounted solar panels since 2014. This system has a generating capacity of 10 kW and can generate approximately 10,000 kWh of electricity each year, all of which helps to power the Wold Escapes site.

In 2025, we installed eight air-source heat pumps to heat our glamping cabins and hot tubs. These are much more energy-efficient than the previous systems, using around one-third as much electricity to produce the heat we need. This reduces our overall electricity consumption and, alongside our solar panels, helps to reduce the amount of energy we need to purchase from the grid. These have been so popular that we have sinced added them to our Farmhouse hot tub and used one to heat the new shower block at our touring caravan park.

We have now made an even greater investment in renewable energy with the installation of a new ground-mounted solar array. With a generating capacity of 84 kW, it is more than eight times the size of our original rooftop system. Together, our two solar installations now give us a total generating capacity of 94 kW.

We also regularly review how energy is being used across Wold Escapes and look for areas where it may be going to waste. This has led to improvements including LED lighting, timers and carefully managed heating schedules, helping us achieve a 10% reduction in electricity use.

“If we want to keep expanding, we can’t simply increase our carbon footprint. Proactively reducing our impact is essential,” says Georgina Renfrew, Manager at Wold Escapes. “Our guests appreciate our efforts too. Many are environmentally conscious and value knowing their stay supports a greener future.”

We know that becoming more sustainable isn’t just about making changes, it is also important to measure the difference they make.

We have calculated our first energy-related carbon footprint for July 2025 to June 2026. Our Scope 1 emissions from heating and refrigerant gases, together with Scope 2 emissions from the electricity we purchased, were estimated at 49.28 tonnes of CO₂e.

This is an initial baseline rather than a complete assessment of every activity at Wold Escapes, but it gives us a valuable starting point against which we can measure our progress.

Our new 84 kW solar array installed in April 2026 have already started to significantly reduce the amount of electricity we purchase from the grid. However, because it has only been operating for a few months rather than the full year, its impact is not yet reflected in our first calculation.

With a full year of additional solar generation included next time, we expect our purchased-electricity emissions, and therefore our overall energy-related carbon footprint, to be noticeably lower. We will continue calculating our footprint annually, looking for further improvements and sharing our progress along the way.

Wold Escapes is surrounded by land cared for by JSR Farms, a family farming business with its own dedicated ecology team.

The team works throughout the year to restore and manage habitats across the farm including the land around Wold Escapes. When you stay you will see the wildflower meadows, native grassland, woodland, hedgerows, wetlands and the chalk-stream sanctuary.

This is not simply about protecting what is already here. It is about helping nature recover and creating a richer, more resilient landscape alongside a productive working farm.

Guests staying at Wold Escapes have exclusive access to peaceful countryside walks across the farm, including our Chalk Stream Sanctuary. These walks are not open to the general public and offer a special opportunity to experience the landscape and wildlife connected with your stay.

The sanctuary includes native trees and hedgerows, wildflower-rich grassland, wetland habitats, pond scrapes for wading birds and the clear waters of the chalk streams.

Depending on the season, you may spot barn owls, kestrels, hares, lapwings and other farmland birds. Along the streams, look out for brown trout, kingfishers and water voles. Great egrets and ospreys have also been sited in the area, as well as several families of deer.

Please remember that this is a working farm and an actively managed conservation area. Follow the information provided during your stay, keep dogs under control and give livestock and wildlife plenty of space.

One of the latest projects led by the JSR Farms ecology team is the introduction of five cows to help manage the hay meadows at Southburn.

The meadows are allowed to grow and flower during the spring and summer, providing food and habitat for insects and other wildlife. Once the annual hay crop has been cut and removed, the cattle are introduced for a short period of carefully controlled grazing.

As they graze the fresh growth at different heights, the cattle create a mixture of shorter areas, taller grasses and small tussocks. This variation gives less competitive wildflowers more light and space while creating different habitats for insects.

The cattle’s dung also provides a temporary food source for beetles, flies and other invertebrates. These insects help to recycle nutrients and provide food for birds and bats.

The cattle are carefully monitored, along with the weather and the condition of the ground. Grazing can be shortened or stopped if the soil becomes too wet, helping to protect the becks, stream margins and other sensitive areas.

The cattle may only be here for part of the year, but their work forms part of a long-term plan to create healthier, more diverse meadows. The cows are used to seeing walkers but please give them a sensible distance and keep any dogs under control.

Read more about our seasonal conservation grazers

Around Wold Escapes and the surrounding farm, we have installed nesting boxes for owls, kestrels and bats, giving them safe places to roost, nest and raise their young.

The boxes are monitored by experienced and licensed wildlife specialists. In 2026, eight barn owl chicks and two kestrel chicks were recorded in boxes across the farm which has been seen as a great success!

Wildflower meadows and pollinator strips provide food and shelter for bees, butterflies, birds and other wildlife. As well as looking beautiful, these areas support the insects that pollinate both wild plants and crops grown on the farm.

A local beekeeper also keeps beehives on the farm. The bees forage among our wildflowers and crops, helping to pollinate the surrounding landscape and producing local honey that guests can buy from Wold Escapes.

More than 6,000 trees have been planted at the Chalk Stream Sanctuary, alongside new hedgerows and areas of managed grassland. Further planting and habitat improvements are planned as the landscape continues to develop.

Where possible, we reuse natural materials from the farm.

Fallen trees may be turned into benches for our farm walks and accommodation areas, made into woodchips for paths or cut into logs for our fire pits.

Willow grown on the farm has been used to create attractive woven fencing between our glamping cabins, giving guests greater privacy while using a natural, locally grown material.

We also collect rainwater to water our pots and floral borders around the site.

Supporting our local community is an important part of responsible tourism.

At the Yorkshire Wolds Cookery School and across Wold Escapes, we use local produce wherever possible. Our suppliers include local butchers, greengrocers, farm shops, fishmongers, wine merchants and breweries.

Where the season allows, we also use potatoes and peas grown by JSR Farms. Food miles do not get much lower than that!

By choosing local suppliers, we help to support rural employment, reduce unnecessary food miles and give our guests an authentic taste of East Yorkshire.

Wold Escapes is close to both Driffield and Hutton Cranswick railway stations, making it possible to reach us by train and complete the final part of your journey by taxi.

An electric vehicle charging point is available for our guests. If you’re travelling in an electric vehicle, you can conveniently charge your car during your stay using our EV charger, which is managed through the Monta app. Simply download the app, create an account, add your payment details, and follow the instructions displayed at the charging station. If you need any more information on this then get in touch by email info@woldescapes.co.uk or call us during office hours on 01377 270607.

We also provide secure bicycle storage, charging facilities for electric bikes and cycle racks outside the farmhouse. Wold Escapes is conveniently located close to the Way of the Roses cycle route, making us an ideal base for exploring the Yorkshire Wolds by bike.

Sustainability is also about ensuring that our countryside and facilities can be enjoyed by as many people as possible.

Our farmhouse includes the ground-floor Southburn Room, which has an accessible wet room with a toilet and shower. It is conveniently located next to the lounge and is popular with guests who require accessible accommodation.

At the Yorkshire Wolds Cookery School, workstations can be lowered to suit different users. We regularly welcome disability groups for cookery courses, residential stays and team-building activities.

We are also at the end of the phone or email with any questions on door sizes or layouts. We understand that everyone's needs are different and our team are very happy to discuss all individual requirements and can send pictures to help visualise where they will be staying. We aim to cater for all guests in the best way possible be that through our portable accessible ramps, shower stools or labelling cupboard doors or decluttering for guests with dementia needs.

Read our Accessibility Guide

The countryside surrounding Wold Escapes is an important part of every guest’s experience. Its peaceful views, wildflower meadows and wildlife are not being left to chance. They are supported by careful farming, specialist ecological management and a long-term commitment to helping nature thrive.

By staying with us, you are supporting this work and helping us care for a very special part of the Yorkshire Wolds.

Explore our accommodation

Read our fill sustainability policy here:

Wold Escapes Sustainability Policy