The so called 'long house' is basically a tent on a platform. It is used to house overnight guests, for socialising, as a library, a comfortable place to use computers and other uses such as watching films. It has undergone a number of changes since first built. It has doubled its length, grown a second skin and aquired a substancial library and office space.

The flooring is made of sterling board reclaimed from temporary structures demolished after Glastonbury festival which are laid on pallets. The floor is supported by a series of beams that are themselves supported by two trees. Upright posts have been jammed in between the beams and the ground in order to prevent the platform from bouncing when walked on. There is little flat ground in the woodland and so we will have to build most of our structures in a similar way.

The canvas used consists of a number of 30ft x 12ft ex-army tent panels that we bought as a job lot. They lace together and contain windows and air vents. We have made supporting posts from sycamore which have been guyed out to keep them upright and the canvas taut. Within the tent is a second structure made of hazel poles which is also covered by canvas an provides a second skin.

The structure provides a floor that measures approximately 14ft by 24ft and has standing headroom throughout. Old carpets have been reclaimed and laid to make the space more comfortable and to help reduce drafts.

Heating is provided by huge wood burning stove in the centre of the structure. Tthe orginal army style tent was very difficult to heat due to its square shape and high pitched roof which is why in the autumn we added the internal structure and second skin of canvas so it is now more efficient to heat.