National Trust for Jersey desperate for £6 million to save 15th century farmhouse

  • ITV Channel's Hannah Ludlow went on a tour of the historic property...

A 15th century farmhouse that has been untouched for 150 years could become a museum for those living in and visiting Jersey.

The National Trust for Jersey wants to restore Le Marinel Farmhouse in St John to its former glory but needs £6 million to complete the project.

Le Marinel is a private Grade 1 listed building and only one of nine in the island.

With crumbling walls and ivy growing through the cracks, the property has fallen into disrepair.

Charles Alluto says the National Trust for Jersey wants to restore the farmhouse to give people a flavour of the original building. Credit: ITV Channel

CEO of the National Trust for Jersey, Charles Alluto, says: "It’s one of those unique, historic buildings which has so much fabric in it, and so it enables people to look back in time and experience what life would’ve been like in the 18th century as well as appreciating the whole of our rural heritage in many ways.

"It’s a challenging project but every time I come here I think yes, it’s worth doing - because there’s something really special.

"We want to put it in a good state of repair, but equally ensure that its significance is protected and that you have that experience of it being a house that’s lost in time."

Le Marinel is an historic building - not just due to its architecture and fabric, but also because of those who inhabited it.

The 'blue room' is full of history - with connections to the Corn Riots and grafitti from 1912. Credit: ITV Channel

One of the Lempriere brothers who ruled Jersey during the Corn Riots of 1769 lived in the farmhouse's 'blue room'.

It was also once owned by the de Carterets - a well-known family in the Channel Islands.

The charity is struggling to raise the funds needed to restore the property and transform it into a museum.

After a private foundation pulled out of the project, Mr Alluto says whilst he is "disappointed" with its progress, he is still "hopeful".

Members of St John's community hope to see the farmhouse restored to what it once was. Credit: ITV Channel

He said: "I hope the government will recognise the importance of working with us to take this project on.

"We recognise that money is tight but equally these opportunities don't come along very often.

"If we don't act soon we're going to lose more and more fabric, and the significance is going to be dramatically reduced."

Deputy Andy Jehan, the Constable for St John, agrees that Le Marinel is worth restoring, describing it as a "jewel in the island's crown".

He added: "There’s so much history attached to this property, we’ve got to do everything we can to preserve that - if that means the government supporting this project then I’ll do everything I can to get that support."

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