Welcome to Cynefin farm

Ty Rhos Uchaf (the site of Cynefin farm) is a 7 acre project in the North Pembrokeshire national park. It is a wild and wonderful place to be, and has an unusual - and locally infamous - history.

After an early beginning as a sheep farm, from the late 1950’s to early 1990’s it became a spectacular and successful garden centre and tree nursery, and our extensive glasshouses (now mostly derelict) are from that time. When the owner retired however, the site had a little change of use and became an equally popular and successful brothel and nudist campsite, with the largest glasshouse now housing a hot tub, mini bar and some locally still well remembered all night parties. The owners from this time were eventually chased out of town and from the late 1990’s the land and gardens have mostly been left to go wild, with only the house being occupied.

We arrived here in November 2019 and were struck by the wild beauty of the land (if not a little daunted by the sheer amount of restoration and broken glass to tackle with). We have spent a large amount of time since then restoring the largest glasshouse, spending our time underneath the old tangles of grapes, passionfruit, figs and apricots, doing our best to bring them back into health and productivity.

The 4ish acres of pasture was very degraded - compacted, overgrazed and bare in many places due to tree felling and earthworks. We set about starting to regenerate this by rotationally grazing a very small flock of Shetland sheep and a mobile chicken house, and reseeding the bare patches with diverse cover crops to deepen and improve our top soil (whilst increasing biodiversity and feeding the pollinators). We've also planted thousands of native, edible and medicinal plants and trees in windbreaks, forest garden and coppice plantations, and have developed no-dig annual gardens.

We feel passionately about localising food and exploring the best and most innovative ways of tending edible gardens in harmony with nature. We also want to build upon the wonderful time we spend in the gardens with volunteers, and the wellbeing and connection that grows from tending gardens together. So from the 2024 season we are in the exciting beginnings of a small CSA project where we will be providing a diverse range of fresh fruits, vegetables and eggs with and for our local community. Please contact us if you would be interested in volunteering with us.

Over the summer months we welcome paying guests to our bell tent bnb, which you can read more about here. We run our CSA, design consultations and educational courses through Cynefin farm CIC - our not-for-profit Community Interest Company, and all profits generated through these activities are reinvested back into projects that support permaculture education and design within our community.

We love to share our passions through courses and events here at the farm, and our first residential design courses began in the summer of 2023. We have lots of amazing courses and workshops planned for 2024 - take a look at our courses page to see what’s coming up.

Birds eye view of Cynefin permaculture farm

Meet the Team

Nim Robins

CO-FOUNDER, EDUCATOR, DIRECTOR
Nim Robins is a permaculture designer, educator and passionate facilitator, with her roots and fingers deep in the soil. Nim has a deep determination for cultivating change in our world and supporting, inspiring and empowering others to do the same through participatory and creative education. Alongside building up the permaculture systems at Cynefin farm, Nim provides permaculture design advice and consultations, and shares nature-based regenerative education with people of all ages.
Nim is certified with the UK Permaculture Association and regularly shares a wide variety of courses, from foundation level all the way through to full PDC’s and specialist advanced design courses, alongside also supporting and assessing those studying at diploma level with the UK Association. Nim is also a core teacher with Permaculture Children - where she focuses on shifting children's education through inspiring teachers to weave permaculture through their curriculums and learning spaces.
Nim loves to tend gardens, have adventures with her children, sleep out under vast starry skies and swim in the ocean. She’s also pretty passionate about homesteading and self sufficiency in a whole load of different ways. But one of the things that lights her up most of all is to bring people together around a shared vision of resilience and regeneration, and to nurture deep, authentic connections to ourselves, each other and to the world around us.
Pete Lees

CO-FOUNDER, DIRECTOR
Pete is a skilled natural builder and carpenter-crafter and is responsible for all of the beautiful handmade spaces that are building up around the farm. He especially loves to work with the natural shape and form of wood and natural materials and creating spaces that bring people together, inspire connection and feelings of wellbeing, and function beautifully.
Pete is also a passionate homesteader and especially loves turning the abundance of our harvests here on the farm into ferments or preserves, which add colourful taste explosions that brighten up every meal. As a Coeliac, Pete is especially interested in preparing and mastering delicious gluten free food (including incredible gluten free sourdough bread). Together with Orlando, Pete prepares all of the food for our residential courses.
Due to these passions, Pete teaches the natural building and preservation sessions on our permaculture design courses, and is also currently preparing to run some short specialist courses here at the farm for natural builders.
Pete loves climbing, wild camping and preparing amazing food. He also loves heading out bicycle touring with his 5 year old daughter Anoushka, who matches Pete in her love of adventure.
Orando Gibson

DIRECTOR
We are blessed to be joined here by Orlando, who arrived 2 years ago as a volunteer and fortunately for us is still here with us and is an integral part of the farm family. He is a fermenter extraordinaire, garden master, tackler of any task big or small, and friend to the birds. The place would surely fall apart without him.