"The new stiles are of excellent quality and design. They are a significant enhancement to the local environment and people are coming just to look at them!"
(a Public Rights of Way Officer in the Peak District National Park)

We have an extensive network of craftspeople and artists, all of whom create a wide range of features. If you are interested specifically in commissioning a stile, then please note that in relation to the Disability Discrimination Act, we are supporting and working with the relevant authorities. We are encouraging our clients to install gates or kissing gates as an alternative to stiles, where this is possible, to enable easier access for all.

A wide range of other features is also possible.

A Selection of Our Most Recent Projects

Peak District Footpath Bridge

We have recently installed a hand-carved oak bridge over a stream near the Pennine Way at Edale. The bridge was commissioned on behalf of a local family who live in the Hope Valley, in memory of a Sheffield-born man. It was made by a local craftsman using green oak and carved from a single tree. "I needed a tree with a slight curve in it which I could use to carve both the bridge and the handrails - eventually I found the perfect oak in some local woodland managed for nature conservation. It's a lovely memorial in a beautiful setting and a wonderful celebration of someone's life."
The finished bridge is also very welcome to local walkers who, for the last 18 months, have had to ford the stream since the original bridge was washed away. The National Trust's High Peak Estate is particularly pleased that the bridge has been completed: "This new bridge sits on one of our busy paths in Edale. We've been happy to support this project as it not only improves access for the many walkers who enjoy the area but also promotes the use of appropriate materials and high quality design in the countryside. We believe that it is important to support specialist local skills and crafts. Not only that but the bridge looks great and is a pleasure to walk across!"

Stylish Wheat Ear Field Gate 

In the Cotswolds, a local craftswoman worked with The Stile Company to carve a simple oak gate at a private garden in the village of Buckland near Broadway. She is totally committed to using local natural materials: "I enjoy working with the natural forms and qualities of the wood and aim to combine fresh design with good workmanship, giving both comfort and strength to the piece." The gate was created to the brief of the design and build landscape contractors who were working on the large garden of the property.

Unique Hand Carved House Sign 

An unusual house sign, which features doves flying against a portcullis has been made from hand-carved and coloured oak which has been traditionally pegged and jointed. Our woodcarver worked with a local blacksmith who made the metal frame. The Stile Company had to obtain Listed Building Consent and also an Oversailing Licence during a lengthy statutory process.

Tony Baldry, MP for Banbury and North Oxfordshire, is delighted with the finished piece: "A lot of hard work and design creativity has gone into this and the result is excellent. Rural crafts are extremely important to enhance the countryside and The Stile Company have been very innovative in the way they have gone about encouraging them."

Wedding Anniversary Gift  

A literary message of love, hand carved in blue Welsh slate, was commissioned to celebrate the 25th wedding anniversary of a London doctor. The craftsman sourced a large piece of Welsh slate and prepared a sketch design before hand-carving each letter to create the inscription – working with The Stile Company in secret to ensure the client's husband was totally surprised on the day of the anniversary. Both clients were delighted with the end result:

"Richard was thrilled with his present. We sit on the bench beneath the slate on warm evenings and I look out on it when I wash up. The carving is easily seen from our kitchen window, and is clearly visible even in bad weather. It never fails to give us enormous pleasure".

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Cuckoo Lane Name Stone 

A unique carved name stone was installed on an ancient public right-of-way in Oxford City.  The stone was carved in Hoptonwood limestone from Derbyshire and given a hand-tooled finish to deter graffiti by the sculptor. Obtaining the permissions from the authorities involved much liaison and took almost a full year.  We were able to meet our client's request to install the stone on the anniversary of her mother's death.

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Ridgeway Stile

The stile is in memory of our client's husband, who loved to walk on The Ridgeway and who was well known in the local area. The stile was constructed by a local craftswoman who works with both wood and metal, using locally grown English oak and traditional peg and dowel techniques, with no metal fixings. It incorporated a unique galvanised dog-latch with decorative handle and special stainless steel vandal proof fixings. It was accompanied by a slate stone, set to the side to resemble a milestone, hand letter-carved with a suitable inscription.

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Nursing Home Seat

Crafted from local oak, with arms carved from sweet chestnut, a curved seat for a nursing home garden near Worthing sits perfectly against a yew hedge, providing a relaxing setting for up to four people at a time. A family member says it's a positive reminder of her grandmother's life: "My family and I are delighted that this wooden seat was so beautifully constructed in my grandmother's memory. She was a strong, practical and amazing woman who adored working and spending time in her own garden and who can now be remembered by all those who sit on this extraordinary seat to enjoy the surroundings and view".

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Meerbrook Stile

The project involved the replacement of an existing dilapidated stile and fencing with a new stile, hand-made with English oak from coppice woodland in Shropshire. A carved hand-hold post featured oak leaves and wildflowers. Fencing of sweet chestnut rails set the stile into the gap between two existing stone gate posts.

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Sheen Stile

Situated on a footpath in the White Peak area of the Peak District, at a spot where the path crosses a small brook. The stile and new fencing were designed to make the site safer for people crossing the water, removing the danger of slipping into the stream.

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A project to plant 2000 native species of wildflowers and bulbs (selected and approved with the county ecologist), planted in association with conservation volunteers. Great care was taken to ensure that the wildflowers chosen were appropriate for the area and that they had been grown (in non-peat compost) from British sourced and collected seed.

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