England's largest surviving medieval timber-framed barn could be “shaken to pieces” by aircraft vibrations if Heathrow airport expands, campaigners warn. The public has until 1 September to submit objections to the expansion, which threatens the survival of the New Barn at Harmondsworth.
Built in 1426 and bought by English Heritage in 2011, the barn is significant for its extraordinary scale and the near-complete survival of its medieval structural timbers. It is nearly 60 metres long, 12 metres wide and 11 metres tall, with 13 massive oak trusses holding up the roof. The former poet laureate Sir John Betjeman described it as a “cathedral”.
Justine Bayley, English Heritage's former archaeological scientist and a conference speaker, told the Guardian that the boundary of the extended airport would be barely a few hundred metres from the barn, which “could be shaken to pieces by the vibrations from airplanes taking off”. She noted that the barn's structural timbers are more than 95% original.
Bayley, who chairs the Stop Heathrow Expansion campaign, said that actual measurements of vibrations from the current north runway have not been taken, although it is a similar distance from the nearby village of Longford, which would be demolished. She said Longford has “dreadful vibrations”, and that monitoring would “throw up warnings for the barn”.
Christian Hughes, whose Longford home would be demolished, said they can feel planes departing before they hear them, and that a relatively new house in a nearby hamlet has developed “significant cracking” from vibrations. Art historian Marian Campbell highlighted the barn's exceptional rarity, noting that documents tell us exactly when it was built, where the trees came from, and who paid for it.
A Heathrow spokesperson said they will continue to work with local communities and that the DCO process will look in detail at potential impacts and mitigations. A Department for Transport spokesperson said views on potential impacts will be carefully considered during the consultation.
On 5 September, English Heritage and the Friends of the Great Barn at Harmondsworth are hosting a conference in the barn and the adjacent church of St Mary, with papers on the barn's construction and recent archaeological investigations.