Slebech Park commands a stunning position overlooking the Daucleddau Estuary one
of the most important Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) in Europe. Although some
20 miles in land, there is still a 14ft tide at Slebech and the resulting mudflats
and reed beds provide an ideal habitat to numerous species. At night you will hear
the Curlews calling while by day the shores abound with wading birds notably Shell
Duck in the spring and Eagrets.
In the winter the woods abound with woodcock and snipe are in the reed beds where
in autumn literally tens of thousands of starlings roost. Kingfishers and herons
are other common sightings. More elusive are the otters that fish on the edge of
the water early in the morning for sea trout and if you are really lucky you may
see a seal following the sea bass up river.
More important than all of that are the 7 species of bat that reside in attics and
cellars of the Coach House itself and in the medieval tunnels nearby. At dusk these
highly sophisticated mammals are to be seen going out to feed on insects in the
gardens and over the ponds that surround the area. They may fly as far as 10 miles
in search of food but in the development of Slebech Park we have worked closely
with the Countryside Commission for Wales to enhance the habitat for all the different
species, the rarest of which is the Greater Horseshoe. Work has included the planting
of shrubs, the clearing of ponds and even the construction of a new cave for the
bats to hibernate in during winter.
Our environment is very important to us. We value the fact that we have minimal
light pollution and on a cloudless night we can truly star gaze. We keep the outside
lighting to a minimum also so as not to deter the bats. Throughout the building
we have fitted a rain water harvesting system to be fed from a well under the coach
house courtyard.
Other contributions to the environment include the installation of a composting
system so that all our kitchen waste is recycled as compost for the kitchen garden
and a system that preheats the water using heat from the servers and other computers.
We encourage our guests to be environmentally conscious by reusing their bath towels
and turning down the heat when they are out of their rooms enjoying the outstanding
natural beauty of Pembrokeshire. We also encourage them to leave something behind
in the name of Carbon Neutrality by planting a tree at Slebech Park to offset their
trip.