Wassailing is typically celebrated on twelfth night in an Ancient tradition and Pagan festival that takes its name from Wassail, meaning be you healthy, the chant sent up by revelers as they drank hot mulled cider, banged their drums and blessed the orchard for a bountiful harvest that year. The festival marked a rekindling of the community’s connection with nature after a dormant winter and helped to mark the constant cycle of nature through growth, decay and rebirth. This cyclical concept can be applied when considering the future of Bacton Gas Terminal and my proposal suggests that this highly secured and privatized site can, through its decommissioning, become something that grows with rather than against its surroundings. This evolution from the industrial to the ecological will evolve over a 75 year time span and see the site transition from a Gas terminal, through wildflower meadows, before reaching maturity as a productive apple orchard and the adoption of an architecture that will support this growth. A hub for the production of apple juice and cider will serve as the main public frontage to the site whilst sitting behind this and nestled within the orchard are the teaching and learning facilities along with a workshop, factory and on site accommodation. To facilitate product creation, education and enhance awareness of regenerative farming techniques these buildings will become intertwined with the orchard and potager gardens. Through this the site would become not only a sanctuary for diverse wildlife and heritage fruit, but also create a legacy of learning, experimentation and rehabilitation.

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Francesca Jones

︎Studio 2, Year 3