Devon self catering cottage, England

Planet

Protecting and enhancing Devon's wildlife is the core mission at Otter Cottage, and you'll see the evidence of this from your windows. Since your stay is what finances our conservation work, we offer guests a free guided nature walk that explains how we manage the farm.

Suppliers
From the cleaning materials to the butter in your welcome scones and even the bank we use, we take great care that your holiday is green to the core. Every business decision takes account of sustainability, considering the impacts here in Devon but also 'up and down stream': impacts on the climate, on pollution and waste, and on sustainable communities.

Energy
Otter cottage gets all its power from renewable sources - mostly from the farm's grid-connected wind turbine and solar panels and from a green grid provider as back up. The cottage itself uses about 50% of the average UK household per night power consumption thanks to solar hot water (and immersion back up!), good insulation and the woodburner (buring our own local firewood). You can even recharge your electric car here.

Transport
We will collect and return you to the bus or train station if you all arrive at our Devon self catering accommodation without a car. We cycle ourselves, and have a fleet of reclaimed ‘farm bikes’ for you to borrow free of charge. We encourage car-free, walking and cycling holidays by offering itinerary suggestions, time tables and our local knowledge.

People

Friends and Neighbours
We know that Devon is about more than just beautiful countryside to visit. It's about community too, and we always look for ways to boost local involvement. For example, when we gave our largest pond over to wildlife we gave the fish away to a local community angling club (with help from the Environment Agency). Fishing is now in the small pond!
We promote other local businesses, and local things to do. When you shop in the village, eat at the pub, or order food from Fiona’s farm shop up the road, you’re helping the local economy. The cottage was built as holiday lets and there's no planning permission for year-round occupation. So staying at our farm boosts North Devon's economy without taking accommodation away from local people. And if we don’t have availability for you we’ll try to recommend someone near Winkleigh who does.

Campaigning for Change
Maggie and Ian have long been active in local sustainability issues, including through helping set up a local green group, a plastic recycling scheme, helping with local repair cafes, doing a stint on the parish council and also the Devon Countryside Access Forum. We are North Devon biosphere business partners and have used our experiences and voice to show what sustainable tourism can do, both by talking with our guests and acting as a case study for various schemes. Maggie uses her freelance professional editing skills to help communicate issues of climate justice and the importance of healthy ecosystem services in international development through work with the International Institute for Environment and Development.