Long Furlong House – Duchy of Cornwall – IndiNature – Natural fibre construction insulation

Case Study: Historic Retrofit

Location

Highgrove Estate, Gloucestershire, England.

Project Summary

Highgrove Estate is the private residence of King Charles III and Queen Camilla. This was a loft retrofit for this grade II listed building owned by the Duchy of Cornwall, with the original part of the house dating to the late 17th century.

The project was featured in Listed Heritage Magazine (Dec 2024) as an example of the use of appropriate materials and best practice for retrofitting historic buildings. Natural fibre insulations such as hemp work in sympathy with historic buildings by naturally 'breathing' vapour out to help preserve structures and add longevity.

Cast yourself back to the 1500’s, and you find a time where every farmer in the land was mandated by the Crown to grow industrial hemp - a fast-growing crop it was required for its tough fibres in the Navy's ropes and sails. A traditional crop grown from Scotland to East Anglia, Wales and the West Country, it was stigmatised from the 1920s, and the skills for farming and working with its components almost lost. However, after a 100 year ‘oil age’ blip, following other countries around the world industrial hemp is now making a comeback in the UK in construction insulation, textiles, furnishings and more.