Scottish borders B&B farmstay accommodation

We feel we are incredibly fortunate to be able to live in such a beautiful part of the world which is often overlooked by visitors to Scotland. We love being able to share it with all our visitors who choose to stay with us. We are also very keen to make sure that we pass this place on to the next generation in as unspoilt condition as we can. To this end we try to minimise the impact that we have on the environment and also the impact that our visitors have. We try to do this by keeping energy consumption to a minimum while still providing a comfortable and inviting guesthouse, recycling wherever we can and keeping wastage to a minimum, catering using fresh ingredients prepared by Fiona at the guesthouse, eliminating as far as possible our use of harmful chemicals, seeking ways to reduce our carbon footprint, increasing the biodiversity of the grounds around the centre and encouraging as much wildlife as we can to cohabit the area, providing as many wildlife watching opportunities for visitors as we can but in such a way that they do not disturb the resident flora and fauna and providing sources of information about the Centre and the farm which helps to inform visitors about what we are doing and perhaps inspiring them to take more care of their corner of the world when they return home.

We provide free access to project and encourage local school to get involved. We also provide venue for local groups to meet. We buy locally produced beer, honey, and other produce when available. We use local contractors where possible and employ local staff. The shop in tea room stocks a small supply of locally produced crafts in addition to fair trade products from around the world.

The Wildlife Project encourages individuals and groups to visit the Centre with free access to the Project. The local primary school is a partner in the project and has been involved in planting trees and a hedge on the farm. The centre regularly host lunches and meetings for various local community groups. It has also been used as a venue for overnight meetings by various groups and charities.

The guesthouse also houses our Wildlife Project. Aim of project is to increase the biodiversity of the farm as much as possible and to allow the visitors to experience the wildlife watching opportunities with minimal impact on the wildlife. This is done through tree planting, habitat improvement, exclusion of farm animals and humans from wildlife area, cameras to view wildlife, way marked walks directing people along paths. We also have a children’s wood where they can identify and learn about a variety of trees, watch butterflies and birds in season, go pond dipping and enjoy an animal treasure hunt.

As many lights as possible are low energy bulbs. Guests are encouraged to switch off lights when they leave rooms. All electrical equipment is switched off at the socket when not in use and not in standby mode. We have a towel agreement policy in place to reduce unnecessary washing (saving energy and water). Our washing hung up outside as much as possible. Our garden watered with river water. All rooms have ensuite showers and taps regularly checked for drips. We minimise waste by buying in bulk when appropriate. We avoid overproduction of meals (and if extra, feed the neighbours). All cleaning products are environmentally friendly (Ecover or similar) and all beverages in room and where possible in tea-room are fair-trade. We have a kerbside collection of paper and card, plastics and cans for recycling and bottles delivered to local bottle bank. We compost all appropriate kitchen and garden organic matter.