Manor Farm Bridge

The Newt Hotel and the Emily Estate Farm sit either side of a busy A road, meaning every trip between the farm and the hotel, for produce, staff and visitors meant crossing the A359. The estate wanted a bridge that would reconnect the two halves of the farm, cut traffic and hold its own against a setting that’s been very deliberately designed. 

We designed a lightweight steel bridge with curved girders, semi-integral bearings and enough camber to clear the road below, built to carry fully loaded farm vehicles, pedestrians, cyclists and horses without missing a beat. 

The standout feature is sixty tonnes of architectural steel fins, no two the same, each one structurally load-bearing as well as part of the bridge’s look. That meant the CAD modelling and welding had to be precise; there was no room for “close enough” when every fin is doing a job. Inspection hatches are built in, although invisible to the untrained eye, so the bridge can be maintained without disturbing its lines. 

We worked closely with Beaver Bridges and the Emily Estate team to sequence the construction safely around a live road and working farm which was not a simple ask. Corrosion protection was applied offsite and every piece of steel on the bridge is recyclable. 

The bridge now does exactly what it needed to: it’s reconnected the estate, taken traffic off the public road and made the daily movement of farm vehicles, pedestrians and horses straightforward and safe. It also won a Merit at the Structural Steel Design Awards; recognition that elegant and structural don’t have to be at odds with each other.