About Border Oak
Border Oak was incorporated in Herefordshire in 1980 by founders (and brothers in law) John Greene and Mark Hicks.
They revived the lost craft of green oak framing, which had died out over 250 years previously. John and Mark wanted to design and build better homes as an alternative to the poor quality, ubiquitous housing estates that were popping up across rural areas in the 1970’s and 80s. They believed oak framing and vernacular design could have a place in the market, so they set about their new path to offer something new and different – beautiful and long lasting homes built from natural materials. They focused on craftsmanship and character, inspired by the medieval oak frames all around them, but without the many pitfalls of old homes.
Both John and Mark held a deep knowledge of, and love for, oak framing, traditional craftsmanship and vernacular detail – so they set about assembling a highly skilled and like minded team to help them embark upon their quiet housing revolution.
Over the past five decades Border Oak has continued to honour Mark and John’s pioneering ethos – aiming to make the best oak framed structures for all, shaping the self and custom build sector through exemplary service and flexibility, and inventing many new construction concepts and processes along the way.
From a small orchard shed to market leaders with an international reputation
Border Oak have grown from very humble beginnings – what was once two brothers making oak frames in a Herefordshire orchard has become a team of over 100 with large workshops, show homes and projects across the UK and abroad.
Since 1980 we have been fortunate enough to work on some incredible projects – from potting sheds to entire villages – but we have always held true to our core ethos: designing and building very good homes, with an unrivalled approach to customer service, unmatched attention to design and detail, and a unwavering commitment to the qualities and legacy of green oak framing.
Meet the Team
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Managing Director
Ben Albright
Managing Director
Ben Albright
When did you start working at Border Oak? October 2004, I remember it well because our first baby, Minnie, had just arrived and I was suffering from sleep deprivation. Minnie is 21 now and works at Border Oak in her University holidays.
Your interests:Â In my dreams I’m a professional skier and a cricket pundit. But in reality I enjoy spending time with family and friends, and anything to do with sport (watching, playing, coaching). Oh, and I like food. A lot.
What do you like best about your job? All my work colleagues are great (I have to say that as I work with my wife and sister-in-law) and I enjoy the office banter (most of which is aimed at me). We genuinely do have a great atmosphere at work – it’s laid back, but professional and we get stuff done – even though what we do is complicated with many variables and super specialised.  I also really enjoy seeing the clients’ dreams come to fruition – I’m constantly amazed that we can draw something on paper which then ends up being built, sometimes on the other side of the world. Nothing beats seeing our finished projects in the flesh and hearing the clients responses – it really does makes you feel very proud to work at Border Oak.
Your favourite Border Oak House? Perhaps romantically (definitely nostalgically) I have a soft spot for the first house that Merry and I built: the original Pearmain Cottage (which featured on Grand Designs in 2003). It was our first home and we worked so hard to build it – we couldn’t believe it was actually ours. Definitely the best thing we ever did. That Grand Designs episode still seems resonate with clients after all this time, which is lovely and we have been commissioned to build 100s of Pearmain Cottage variations since. We met Kevin McCloud recently at a dinner party (more than 20 years later)…..and he remembered us despite our grey hair!
Anything else of interest? I worked for Border Oak on site as a labourer for 2 lovely bricklayers, Billy and Hylton, back in 1996 when I was 19. I was searching for my next step in life and Border Oak acted as something of a refuge for me, until I could workout what I wanted to do. The brickies were great characters, and taught me a lot about life (not so much about laying bricks) and I consider myself very fortunate to be taken under their wing. There are some great stories from those days I could divulge, but I won’t…….
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Co-Managing Director
Jim Brechtmann
Co-Managing Director
Jim Brechtmann
When did you start working at Border Oak? In 2012 – my brother Ed had worked at Border Oak for a while and he mentioned a new position that may fit my skill set.
Your interests:Â I like playing guitar and spending time with my family.
What do you like best about your job? Working as part of a happy team – and having such a brilliant product.
What’s your favourite Border Oak feature? Probably the famous Border Oak Porch – beautifully made, and the perfect addition for any home. Others try to imitate but it has never been equalled.
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Commercial Director
Tim Watkins
Commercial Director
Tim Watkins
When did you start working at Border Oak? 2015
What do you enjoy most about your job? Getting involved in all aspects of the build process, and watching projects develop from an idea into a stunning home. It’s also heartening to see what a very diverse range of budgets can achieve.
What’s your favourite aspect of the Border Oak range? I like the fact that no two projects are the same. The craftsmanship of our workforce still astounds me, and it’s a pleasure to witness the creation of endless ideas and innovations.
Other facts that might be of interest:Â The management of project finances might be considered the epitome of boredom to normal folk, but it ticks my boxes. Fortunately focusing upon the end-goal (i.e. delivering a project on time and on budget) and the beauty of Border Oak’s buildings, keeps me sane (ish).Â
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Sales Director
Ed Brechtmann
Sales Director
Ed Brechtmann
When did you start working at Border Oak? 2005
Your interests: I love to travel and visit new places, home and abroad. When I’m not at work I enjoy spending time with family and friends, going on long walks and eating good food. I also enjoy a good film and theatre visit when time allows.
What do you like best about your job? Traveling all around the country meeting interesting people from all walks of life. It is also a privilege to help develop the design of our clients new homes – and then get to see them living in them once we’ve built them. I also get to work with an amazing team of very talented people who make coming to work a pleasure.
What’s your favourite Border Oak design? That’s a very hard question as we have designed so many different and amazing homes over the years, and I luckily get to see every design we produce. It all really depends on the location and plot setting I guess – but if I were pushed for a category then it would probably come down to either one of our barn style houses or perhaps a Georgian inspired design in brick.
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Creative Director
Merry Albright
Creative Director
Merry Albright
When did you start working at Border Oak?  I can’t remember – a long time ago. I came (with my colouring pencils) to help with a small presentation and never left.
Your interests:Â Anything to do with houses – old and new – and interiors, art and architecture. I also love orchards, hedges, meadows and rivers. But my children are my biggest ‘interest’ – I still find them fascinating (as only a mother could).
Favourite part of your job? Everything apart from administration – which not my strongest suit. I’m very lucky, my job is pretty amazing. One day I might be working with the architectural team creating new house designs, the next I can be found on site annoying the builders, or making a presentation to a Parish Council and negotiating with a planning officer. I’m also especially fortunate to work with great colleagues who are more like friends really. I will always be very grateful that I also spent a long time working with my father, John. He was the most intelligent, kindest, talented and generous person I know – learning from him was the privilege of my life.
Favourite Border Oak feature:Â Our oak frames are just beautiful – because they are well designed and made by hand with care and diligence. I very much enjoy dropping into the workshop to see what the guys are making – it’s very impressive. And I feel a deep responsibility to ensure that the craft of oak framing remains relevant and desirable in the 21st Century – Dad revived the lost craft of oak framing and spent his working life trying to protect and preserve the skills. It is important to me that Border Oak is anchored by authenticity – we are aiming to create beautiful and sustainable homes that will last for centuries.
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Sales Manager
Julie Lawrence
Sales Manager
Julie Lawrence
When did you start working at Border Oak? 1993 – I was a fresh faced teenager back then! I used to wait at Border Oak for my school bus and one day John put me to work and I have been here ever since. Â
Your interests: Entertaining, socialising, reading and travelling.
What do you like best about your job:Â I really enjoy meeting Border Oak clients and being a part of their journey. They become friends, and I love being invited to see their completed homes and staying in touch.
Your favourite Border Oak house? This is difficult as I’ve seen so many Border Oak houses over the last 25 years, but if I had to choose I would say St. Michael’s Cottage, our Show House in Kingsland. I’m there nearly every day and I still love it every time I walk through the door. The team think I’m joking when I say I’m going to move in!
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Outbuildings Sales Manager
Paul Grubb
Outbuildings Sales Manager
Paul Grubb
When did you start working at Border Oak? April 2018 after 10 years’ experience within the oak framing industry and a few more years within the Customer Service sector.
Your interests: I am a keen tennis and badminton player and more recently a novice golfer. I also enjoy gardening and making unusual objects in my workshop at home using oak offcuts!
What do you like best about your job? Working as part of a passionate and creative team to provide our clients with the best possible customer experience and an Oak Framed Outbuilding design which suits their needs and exceeds their expectations.
Your favourite Border Oak house? I just love oak – its strength, durability and the way in which it improves with age and silvers at it matures. From our beautifully crafted Pearmain Porch to the amazing Redgate House, they are all amazing – it’s impossible to pick a favourite.
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HR and Research
Miranda Jones
HR and Research
Miranda Jones
When did you start working at Border Oak?  Officially May 2007, but I’m John’s youngest daughter so Border Oak has always been in my blood.
Your interests:Â Â Crafts, cooking, walking and spending time with family – as if working with most of them 5 days a week wasn’t enough!
What do you like best about your job? Meeting clients at the start of their journey and sharing in their excitement.
Your favourite Border Oak house? The house where I grew up, which was the very first Border Oak built and the catalyst for the whole company – it’s truly beautiful. Dad designed and built it himself, with his typical passion and eye for detail, craftsmanship and eccentricity.
Any other information that might be of interest? My Degree is in Ancient History and Archaeology so the fact that we are using traditional construction methods from the Medieval period makes me very happy.
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Management Accountant
Stuart Jones
Management Accountant
Stuart Jones
When did you start working at Border Oak?  January 2024 – I am the new boy around here!
Your interests:Â Â Mountain biking.
What do you like best about your job? I love the whole Border Oak culture. And you can’t beat a good spreadsheet…
Your favourite Border Oak house? I think the Lake House, in the Cotswolds, is pretty incredible.
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Accounts Manager
Bernard Radnor
Accounts Manager
Bernard Radnor
Our Workshop
We are very proud to be one of the only remaining traditional workshops to make green oak frames by hand at every stage, using traditional carpentry methods handed down through generations – preserving the craft and protecting vulnerable skills whilst creating outstanding and unrivalled oak frames of the highest quality.
Our commitment to craft and the finest materials – resisting the short cuts offered by machine automation- is how we create the most beautiful frames available.
Our aim, in 1980 and now, is to make the most beautiful oak frames.
From our family for yours.
Our Services
We are very proud of the flexible and comprehensive services we offer.
From plot finding and site assessment plus our full ‘in house’ design and planning service, we are set up to assist and support you from the very beginning of your journey – and throughout.
We can provide a ‘frame only’ package where we simply design, make and erect your oak frame (and panel system) or we can offer a ‘water tight’ package where the external shell is completed for you to complete internally. And we offer every stage in between!
But perhaps we are best known for our highly regarded ‘Complete Build’ package where Border Oak undertake everything for you – beginning to end.
All of our contract packages are a fixed price offer and include the services of our Project Managers and the ancillary ‘in house’ services needed to complete your project – including quantity surveying, procurement, health and safety, building regulations and warranty provision.
Our ethos is shaped around us forging a long relationship with you and your project – a relationship that is fair, professional, creative and individual.
Our reputation is anchored by these qualities and remains the basis of our 5 decades of success.
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Design
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Planning
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Construction
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Project Management
Sustainability
Sustainability underpins everything we do.
Oak framing is inherently and unquestionably sustainable, but we have adopted a broader and ever improving approach to sustainability across our premises and products.
All of our projects and clients benefit from our core sustainability commitments, but we are also adaptable enough to integrate your specific wishes. All you need to do is let us know what is important to you and we will do our utmost to deliver.
And in an ever changing context we are always learning – and striving to do more.
