From Highland coop to Hagrid's Hut: a remarkable hen house conversion at Belladrum

Joe Gibbs is the owner of the Belladrum Estate, near Beauly in the north-west Highlands. The estate is a 1,150-acre farming and forestry concern which hosts the annual Belladrum music festival. So in terms of successful diversification, Joe is a past master, but his latest project is all about reusing a dilapidated farm building.

The Hen House, on the Belladrum Estate is available for short stays | Katielee Arrowsmith

The estate has been in his family since 1857, and Joe took over the reins in 1997. He says: “We’ve been encouraged for a long time to diversify and the festival has been going since 2004. This year we’ll host about 24,000 people.

“We also used to have quite a few holiday lets, but we switched them to long-term lets a few years ago, because we wanted to do our bit to supply rural housing.”

But some of the buildings on the estate are unsuitable for long-term tenancies, including a dilapidated hen house which was built by Joe’s great-grandfather in 1914.

He says: “Previously, it was a very smart home for hens, it had a boiler in it, which meant the hens would continue laying in the winter.

“But we don’t have hens any more – apart from anything else I’m allergic to eggs, so it became redundant.

“And the Hen House is so small it could only really be used as a holiday let.”

The interior has been created from upcycled and refurbished items | Katielee Arrowsmith

As a historic building, the conversion required planning permission, listed building consent and building warrants, but the council was amenable to the change of use.

From there it was a case of stripping it back to bare walls, and fitting out the little house for human occupation.

Joe says: “It needed reroofing which was not straightforward as it is a very distinctive shape. It is almost hexagonal, but has one straight side.

“I designed the interior layout – the difficulty was creating a separate bathroom, but it lent itself to an otherwise open-plan design.”

The kitchen and dining area | Katielee Arrowsmith

The main space now has everything you could want for a short stay, as long as you don’t mind spending much of your time with any travelling companion.

Apart from the bathroom and separate loo, everything is contained in the same room. There is a well-fitted kitchen, a seating area and dining table, plus sleeping corner.

The finish is characterful to say the least – reclaimed either from the hen house itself or from other buildings on the estate.

Joe says: “We reused as much as we could, refurbishing items as we went along. We used two Indian doorways which we found and my son, Eion, converted them into a four poster bed with doors at the end of it which open.”

The bathroom is tucked discreetly at the back of the building | Katielee Arrowsmith

As well as the father-and-son efforts, Joe says: “We have a great team of builders who work on Belladrum, they are multiskilled, and we brought in plumbers and electricians when we needed them.”

The result is a unique building, which benefits from a shady pergola with seating area outside and another which houses a hot tub, making it perfect for romantic couples or those on honeymoon.

Joe says: “I think it is very romantic. Guests seem to find it so, it is usually couples – and dogs by arrangement. It is very much a place to stay for a romantic break in the Highlands, and it doesn’t really fit a third person.

“A lot of guests compare it to Hagrid’s hut, from the Harry Potter films.”

In the past year, the Hen House has generated an average annual income of £20,000. The conversion recently won an award from Sykes Holiday Cottages, for the Best Quirky Cottage on the online provider’s books.

Joe with his award. The clocktower and steadings are the current renovation project | Katielee Arrowsmith

As for the next project at Belladrum, Joe says on an estate there is always building work on the go – either a conversion, a refurbishment or just general maintenance.

Belladrum holds weddings in a characterful woodland chapel which is part of the estate and this year Joe will be converting a clocktower and adjoining winged steadings into a wedding venue.

He says: “It will be designed to have enough room for a proper ceilidh wedding.”

The Hen House, Kiltarlity, Highlands, is available to let through sykescottages.com priced from £592 per week.