Paston Great Barn | |
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![]() The Barn in 2010 | |
Type | Barn |
Location | Paston |
Coordinates | 52°51′25″N1°26′51″E / 52.85698°N 1.44760°E |
OS grid reference | TG 32192 34539 |
Area | Norfolk |
Built | 1581 |
Governing body | Natural England |
Owner | North Norfolk Historic Buildings Trust |
Listed Building – Grade II* | |
Official name | Paston Great Barn |
Designated | 16 April 1955 |
Reference no. | 1306240 |
Official name | Great Barn, Paston |
Reference no. | 1002884 |
Paston Great Barn is a medieval barn near Paston Hall on the southeast edge of the village of Paston in northeast Norfolk, owned by the North Norfolk Historic Buildings Trust. Dating from 1581, the building has a long association with the Paston family. A scheduled monument and a grade II* listed building, [1] the barn is the centre of a 0.95 hectares (2.3 acres) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest, [2] [3] a National Nature Reserve [4] and a Special Area of Conservation. [5] It is in the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. [6]
The barn is a long, low building, with a thatched roof, and walls built of brick, flint and limestone, with large doors with timber lintels. The barn was commissioned by Sir William Paston III as a grain store and threshing barn. It is approximately 70 metres (230 ft) long, 9 metres (30 ft) wide and 16 metres (52 ft) high. It has been granted Grade II* listed building status by English Heritage due to its architectural and historical importance. There are three 30 metres (98 ft) long Victorian wings on the eastern side of the barn, added to house cattle. Unusually for a barn it has two date stones, one over an entrance and one in a gable end. [7] Additionally, a plaque over the south door records: "THE BILDING OF THIS BEARNE IS Bl SIR W PASTON KNIGHTE". [1]
The barn and its immediate surroundings was notified as a biological Site of Special Scientific Interest by English Nature in 1999, and from April 2005, the site has also been designated as a Special Area of Conservation. [8]
In 2002, English Nature, took on a 50-year lease of the barn. There is currently no public access into the barn, partly in order to minimise disturbance to the bats, although some educational interpretation at the site is being considered for the future.
The barn is one of only six known maternity roosts in Britain for the barbastelle bat, a species which is rare at a European scale, and it is the only roost in a building. [9] The colony was discovered in 1996. The barbastelles mostly roost in large crevices in timber lintels over the barn doors. Their feeding grounds are believed to include nearby coastal cliffs.
Breeding colonies of Natterer's bat (Myotis nattereri), brown long-eared bat (Plecotus auritus) and common pipistrelle (Pipistrellus pipistrellus) also inhabit the barn. [10]
The Norfolk Wildlife Trust (NWT) is one of 46 wildlife trusts covering Great Britain, Northern Ireland, Isle of Man and Alderney. Founded in 1926, it is the oldest of all the trusts. It has over 35,500 members and eight local groups and it manages more than fifty nature reserves and other protected sites. It also gives conservation advice to individuals and organisations, provides educational services to young people on field trips and organises entertainment and information events at nature reserves. The NWT reserves include twenty-six Sites of Special Scientific Interests, nine national nature reserves, twelve Nature Conservation Review sites, sixteen Special Areas of Conservation, twelve Special Protection Areas, eleven Ramsar sites, two local nature reserves, four Geological Conservation Review sites and five which are in Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Hickling Broad is a 600-hectare (1,500-acre) nature reserve 4 km south-east of Stalham, north-east of Norwich in Norfolk. It is managed by the Norfolk Wildlife Trust. It is a National Nature Reserve and part of the Upper Thurne Broads and Marshes Site of Special Scientific Interest and Hickling Broad and Horsey Mere Nature Conservation Review site, Grade I. It is in the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and part of the Broadland Ramsar site and Special Protection Area, and The Broads Special Area of Conservation.
Bilsey Hill is a 3-hectare (7.4-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest south of Blakeney in Norfolk. It is a Geological Conservation Review site and it is in the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Mottisfont Bats is a 196.7-hectare (486-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest west of Winchester in Hampshire. It is also a Special Area of Conservation.
Dersingham Bog is a 159.1-hectare (393-acre) biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Norfolk, England. It is a Nature Conservation Review site, Grade 2, a National Nature Reserve and a Ramsar site It is part of the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and the Roydon Common & Dersingham Bog Special Area of Conservation Part of it is a Geological Conservation Review site.
Salthouse Marshes is a 66-hectare (160-acre) nature reserve west of Sheringham in Norfolk. It is managed by the Norfolk Wildlife Trust. It is part of the North Norfolk Coast Site of Special Scientific Interest, Geological Conservation Review site, Nature Conservation Review site, Grade I. Ramsar site, Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Area. It is also in the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Caerwood And Ashberry Goose House is a 0.01-hectare (0.025-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Gloucestershire, England, notified in 1991. The site was previously notified as Caerwood, Tidenham and lies within the Wye Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Holme Dunes is a 192-hectare (470-acre) nature reserve near Holme-next-the-Sea in Norfolk. It is managed by the Norfolk Wildlife Trust, and is a National Nature Reserve. It is part of the North Norfolk Coast Site of Special Scientific Interest, Geological Conservation Review site, Nature Conservation Review site, Grade I, Ramsar site, Special Areas of Conservation and Special Protection Area. It is also in the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Morston Cliff is a 1-hectare (2.5-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest east of Wells-next-the-Sea in Norfolk. It is a Geological Conservation Review site. It is part of Blakeney National Nature Reserve, which is managed by the National Trust, and of the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Stiffkey Valley is a 44.4-hectare (110-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest east of Wells-next-the-Sea in Norfolk. It is in the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Felbrigg Woods is a 164.6-hectare (407-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest south-west of Cromer in Norfolk. It is the main part of the grounds of Felbrigg Hall, a National Trust property which is listed on the Register of Historic Parks and Gardens of Special Historic Interest in England. It is a Nature Conservation Review site, Grade 2, and it is in the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Mundesley Cliffs is a 29.3-hectare (72-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest north-east of North Walsham in Norfolk. It is a Geological Conservation Review site and it is in the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Sheringham and Beeston Regis Commons is a 24.9-hectare (62-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Sheringham in Norfolk. It is a Nature Conservation Review site, and part of the Norfolk Valley Fens Special Area of Conservation. and Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Sidestrand and Trimingham Cliffs is a 133.9-hectare (331-acre) biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest south-east of Cromer in Norfolk. It is a Geological Conservation Review site. It is in the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Upper Thurne Broads and Marshes is a 1,185.9-hectare (2,930-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest north of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk. Part of it is a Nature Conservation Review site, Grade I, and it is in the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It is part of the Broadland Ramsar site and Special Protection Area, and The Broads Special Area of Conservation. Two areas, Hickling Broad and Martham Broad, are national nature reserves managed by the Norfolk Wildlife Trust.
Weybourne Cliffs is a 40.9-hectare (101-acre) biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest at Weybourne, west of Sheringham in the English county of Norfolk. It is a Geological Conservation Review site. It is in the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Winterton-Horsey Dunes is a 427-hectare (1,060-acre) biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest north of Great Yarmouth in Norfolk. It is a Special Area of Conservation and a Nature Conservation Review site, Grade I. Winterton Dunes is a National Nature Reserve Winterton Ness is a Geological Conservation Review site. The whole site is in the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Wiveton Downs is a 28.9-hectare (71-acre) biological and geological Site of Special Scientific Interest at Wiveton, west of Sheringham in the English county of Norfolk. Part of it is a Geological Conservation Review site, and an area of 6.5-hectare (16-acre) is a Local Nature Reserve. It is in the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Briton's Lane Gravel Pit is a 21.5-hectare (53-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest east of Sheringham in Norfolk. It is a Geological Conservation Review site and it is in the Norfolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
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