Anglo-Saxon site in Suffolk showcases latest heat pump technology

Project Snapshot

Client: West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village (West Suffolk Council)
Sector: Public Sector – Heritage & Visitor Attraction
Building Type: Visitor centre, museum and café within a historic site
Project Scope: Heating, hot water and passive cooling upgrade
Funding Route: Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI)
Our Role: Design and installation of ground source heat pump system
Technologies Used: Ground source heat pumps with boreholes and passive cooling

The Decarbonisation Challenge

West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village is a nationally important historic site near Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk. The reconstructed village, dating back to the Anglo-Saxon period (AD 420–650), attracts schools, tourists and local visitors throughout the year and sits within the wider West Stow Country Park.

The visitor centre and café had previously been heated by an oil-fired boiler. The system was inefficient, expensive to run and no longer aligned with West Suffolk Council’s commitment to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2030.

The challenge was to replace the existing oil system with a low-carbon alternative that would reduce emissions, improve comfort for visitors and staff, and remain sympathetic to the historic setting.

Key Delivery Considerations

From the outset, there were several important factors we needed to manage:

– A historically sensitive site with archaeological significance
– The need to protect artefacts and collections through stable internal temperatures
– Year-round use by visitors, schools and staff
– Limited tolerance for disruption within a public attraction
– The opportunity to reduce reliance on oil in a rural location

Any solution needed to be carefully planned, discreetly installed and capable of delivering long-term performance.

Our Role

We were appointed to design and install a renewable heating solution for the visitor centre and café at West Stow.

Working closely with the project team, we designed a ground source heat pump system that could deliver all heating and hot water requirements, while also providing passive cooling during warmer months.

Great care was taken during ground works to ensure the installation respected the historic nature of the site and avoided disruption to surrounding buildings and collections.

The Solution

We specified and installed two Lämpöässä Eli 60 ground source heat pumps, located within a purpose-built plant room adjacent to the museum.

Heat is collected via 14 boreholes, each drilled to a depth of 147 metres, installed near the site’s collections building. The boreholes operate as a closed-loop system, feeding low-grade heat back to the heat pumps.

In addition to heating and hot water, the system was designed to provide passive cooling, using the stable ground temperature to help maintain comfortable internal conditions during summer.

Delivery & Outcomes

The new system has delivered significant environmental and operational benefits for West Stow:

– A reduction in energy use of approximately 70%
– Major cuts in carbon emissions and heating costs
– A more consistent, comfortable environment for visitors, staff and artefacts
– A long-life heating solution expected to last around three times longer than a conventional boiler
– Eligibility for the Renewable Heat Incentive, supporting long-term value

The project demonstrates how modern heat pump technology can be successfully integrated into historic and culturally significant sites.

The Client’s Voice

Glynis Baxter at West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village said:

“Our village showcases some of the earliest forms of heating – a fire pit dug in the ground with a hole in the roof to let out smoke – so it’s brilliant to now have a heat pump, the latest in renewable technology, heating our facilities.

The new system allows us to maintain a steady, warm temperature all year round, which is ideal not only for our artefacts, but for visitors too.”