This award winning building was designed by Feilden Clegg Bradley Architects for the National Trust and is their Central Office (HQ).  As you would expect from the National Trust, great care was taken in its construction and design to include sustainable products and be energy efficient.  According to its website it used timber from their woodlands and wool from sheep grazed on their farmlands.  It is most certainly striking in its modernity and quite different from its surrounding which is made up of former Great Western Railway works (dating from the mid 1800s), part of which have been turned into a shopping village, the STEAM museum, Historic England offices and plenty of other renovated buildings.

Although part of the National Trust, the offices are not usually open for visitors to look round (it is a working office after all!) but we understand tours may be arranged for groups.  There is a NT cafe and shop which is usually open to visitors (see their website for opening hours).

Our photographs do not do this building justice - it looks much better in real life!  As it is very long and short, it is difficult to fit into one photograph, and not only did we not manage that very well, but most of our photographs were taken on cloudy days or when the flower beds had 'gone over' and looked rather poor.  Looks like we shall have to return when the weather is better.