Farfield Mill

Farfield Mill is owned and run by Farfield Mill Limited, a charitable Community Benefit Society.

We are proud to be a cooperative organisation, owned and run by our Members for the benefit of the wider community. As a charity we are subject to an asset lock, and (apart from receiving modest interest on their investment, if we can afford it) our members themselves do not profit from our activities.

As an organisation we exist to honour and preserve Farfield Mill’s heritage providing a hub for creative enterprises, engaging the visiting public with and fostering in them an appreciation of weaving and other traditional and contemporary art and crafts, and giving them an understanding of the significance of the heritage of the local wool industry.

Vision Statement

A space to celebrate the skills and history of weaving, and the pursuit of other traditional and contemporary art and crafts.

Statement of Purpose

To honour and preserve our textile heritage by providing a hub for creative enterprises, engaging the visiting public with and fostering in them an appreciation of weaving and other traditional and contemporary art and crafts; and to give an understanding of the history and significance of the local wool industry.

Objectives of the Society

The Society’s Rules provide that the objects of the Society shall be for the public benefit to:

(1) preserve for the benefit of the residents of Sedbergh and the surrounding districts, and for the public at large, Farfield Mill and other buildings of historical industrial and architectural heritage which form the group of Mill buildings of which Farfield Mill is a part.

(2) promote and educate the general public about the cultural significance and heritage of:
(a) the production of wool and textiles in Sedbergh, surrounding districts, the Yorkshire Dales and Cumbria; and
(b) the historical role of Farfield Mill in the development of the production of textiles locally.

(3) the preservation and improvement of fine craftsmanship, in particular but not exclusively, weaving and other textile crafts;

(4) to advance education in the arts by the establishment and maintenance of an arts and heritage centre in particular but not exclusively through:
(a) the provision for the public of opportunities to learn about the art and practices of weavers and other artists and craftspeople and to examine their work.
(b) the provision of open workspace for use by new and existing creative enterprises on favourable terms, so that the public can view weavers and other artists and craftspeople engaged in art and practices of craftspeople

(5) for any other exclusively charitable purpose for the benefit of the public and residents of Sedbergh and the surrounding districts as the Board determine from time to time.

The Beginning…

Farfield Mill has a long heritage of producing woollen textiles. Work began on the Mill in 1836 and the site was developed over the following decades. Originally a wool spinning mill, the business developed with additional machinery, including weaving looms and knitting machines.

Farfield Mill was owned and managed by the Dover Family for a one hundred years, until it was sold in 1930’s.

In the following years, the Mill was used for many different things, including, the war effort, storage, spinning and knitting and some weaving. By 1992 the last remaining looms were due to sold off. It was then that a local group set up the Sedbergh and District Buildings Preservation Trust to raise money and save the Mill and the looms, for future generations.

In 2001 Farfield Mill opened to the public as a art and heritage centre.

You can find out more about the history of the Mill here

Farfield Mill, a Community Benefit Society

Farfield Mill converted from a charitable company in 2018 and launched a community share offer which raised nearly £250,000 from private investors and matched funding of £100,000 from Coops UK: Power to Change. The money raised went to pay off a significant portion of the mortgage on the Mill and to invest to give Farfield Mill a sustainable future.

As a charitable Community Benefit Society we are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority: you can find more information about Farfield Mill Ltd, such as our rules, who our directors are and our statutory reports on the FCA website here.