A vision brought to life

Having recently completed their first build on the stunning Isles of Scilly, we catch up with Post & Beam.

After nearly five years of operating a dedicated workshop in St Ives to serve the Cornish market, Post & Beam have just completed their first oak frame building on the Isles of Scilly. An adventure in its own right, the project has proved to be a success for everyone involved. Building an oak frame barn on the islands was never going to be simple but, according to designer Tom Jubb:

“When the clients throw in beer, great hospitality and bounds of positive energy, it’s got to be worth a go!”

Emily and Dominic Crees of the Seven Stones Inn on St Martin’s were keen to work with the team at Post & Beam to bring their vision to life of an oak frame barn as an additional function space to their island pub. Dom tells us: “We had known of Post & Beam and have always been drawn to and admired their work. When we discovered that the company now has a workshop in Cornwall, it really felt like a perfect fit.”

Dominic and Emily worked very closely with Tom for several months. “Much consideration had to be given to evolving the design, gaining planning permission and forming a team to pull the project off,” Emily explains. “We had to carefully consider the reality of the logistics of building here throughout the design phase,” adds Tom, “anyone who has visited the Seven Stones will be aware of how off the beaten track it is. Think paths rather than roads, boats rather than trucks, and a legend of a local digger driver in place of a crane, and you’ll start to get the idea!” After they concluded that it could be done, Managing Director, Tim Simpson and the team worked alongside James Morton of St Martin’s to bring the building to life over several months. Tim explains: “Getting a seven-metre-long oak beam weighing half a tonne from the harbour to site, and then into position, with the island’s only digger was interesting.”

Now completed, the building boasts idyllic views across the water to St Mary’s and Tresco. It serves not only as extra seating during busy dining periods, but also as a venue for weddings and gigs, as a meeting space, and indeed anything else a small island community with swelling numbers of summer tourists can throw at it! St Martin’s really is a slice of paradise and since purchasing the island’s only pub four years ago, with a little help from Post & Beam, Emily and Dominic have turned the Seven Stones into the hub that any island community struggles without.