Lower Motor Yard is located within the ‘Welbeck Village’on the Welbeck Estate. This area, developed in the mid - nineteenth century, lies within the Grade II registered historic park and garden, near Worksop, Nottinghamshire. Lower Motor Yard was designed as a Fire Engine House and Stables and is listed Grade II. Woodhall was commissioned as architect and lead consultant for the conversion of the building to accommodate an artisan bakery - The Welbeck Bakehouse - and The School of Artisan Food.
The fundamental concept of the school was to create a centre for excellence in artisan food production. A key requirement was to have two wood-fired ovens forming the heart of the bakery. The conversion was carefully designed to retain the legibility of the original buildings with new insertions in a contemporary but reversible manner. The alterations to the exterior were kept to a minimum. The principal alteration was the removal of some timber doors to enable the insertion of a new glazed screen to demarcate the main entrance to the school.
