The transfer of ownership, first mooted last year, was completed at the end of July although Shropshire Housing Group’s partner and managing tenant, Grow Cook Learn, has been in situ since April.

The centre at Craven Arms was first opened by Shropshire Council in 2001 at a cost of £2.4m and has since become a tourist attraction for those visiting the South Shropshire Hills, as well as a centre for educational use. The transfer of ownership will see it continue to offer school visits, local information and the Secret Hills exhibition, although there are some exciting new plans afoot for further growth.

Grow Cook Learn will create a training centre for food-related employment and work to ensure that the centre becomes a vibrant visitor attraction demonstrating the link between food production and the landscape of the Shropshire Hills. Local lunches, frothy coffees and Shropshire cream teas have joined the menu in the café and Sunday lunches continue to be popular. Work will begin in the autumn on a horticultural project to grow produce for the café.

A refurbishment programme is due to be undertaken in early 2015 and will incorporate a professional kitchen for training and the move of the café to a more central position.

Speaking of the decision to take on the centre, Jake Berriman, Chief Executive of Shropshire Housing Group, said: “The Shropshire Hills Discovery Centre is a fantastic facility for the residents of Craven Arms and further afield and we were keen that this should be maintained and maximised.

“By taking on the management of the centre, we can ensure that it’s run for the community’s benefit and contributes to the sustainability of the local area.”