During the middle ages, monks would travel to the village of Llanafan Fawr in mid-Wales to visit the church and relics of St Afan, a son of the king of Gwynedd, martyred by foreign pirates centuries before.<\/p>\n
Today, a different sort of pilgrim can be found there. Two hilly, wooded parcels of land in Llanafan Fawr have been bought by the Woodlander Initiative (TWI), a land-buying scheme led by Simon Birkett, a far-right figure with links to Patriotic Alternative, the UK\u2019s largest fascist group. Critics say Wiltshire-based Birkett\u2019s aim is to create a racially exclusive settlement; he has cited Orania<\/a>, a whites-only town in South Africa, as an inspiration for the project.<\/p>\n TWI successfully bought the two small plots totalling a few acres from a local farmer late last year, after attempts in Cumbria and East Sussex fell through. Since launching in 2023, the group has raised \u00a3165,000 of a goal of \u00a31m \u2013 money Birkett plans to use to buy land or property in every county in Britain.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need to start building that alternative, our own businesses, our own institutions,\u201d Birkett said during an address at Patriotic Alternative\u2019s annual conference last October. \u201cWe need our own schools, with our own rules.\u201d<\/p>\n Tents, huts and solar panels have been put on the site in Llanafan Fawr. Photograph: Francesca Jones\/The Guardian<\/p>\n He added: \u201cWe need our own areas, we need our own land, we need our own buildings, we need our own conference centres. We need our own communities for our own culture. And it is down to us to start building it.\u201d<\/p>\n Birkett is now making this dream a reality. No one was around during the Guardian\u2019s visit last week, but the larger plot \u2013 previously an open field \u2013 is now a campsite. It hosted several tents, along with camping gear, solar panels, a wood store and a toilet block. Some of the fencing was clearly new and, at the second hilly, wooded site, a small gazebo was perched among the oak trees.<\/p>\n According to anti-fascist group Hope Not Hate, which exposed the TWI purchases in Llanafan Fawr, Birkett has already hosted members of PA at the sites, which are about 20 metres apart. A \u201cfamily camp weekend\u201d is planned for 13-14 September.<\/p>\n Birkett and others using the TWI properties have sought help from the community. The area is accessed via a road belonging to the neighbouring farm owned by Delia and John Weedon, who said that people at the site have previously asked them for water, and help putting up fencing.<\/p>\n \u201cI helped them out by driving some wood and fencing stuff up the hill once. They seemed nice enough, they wave sometimes when they\u2019re going by,\u201d John Weedon said. \u201cWe only heard about these far-right rumours later. Now the whole area is talking about them.\u201d<\/p>\n TWI denies it is a white supremacist organisation. In an email to the Guardian, Birkett said that TWI is not building a village, although that would be \u201ca worthwhile endeavour\u201d, and noted that the group\u2019s membership criteria \u201cdoes not mention colour or ethnicity\u201d. Its constitution states it is a non-political organisation aimed at \u201cbuilding community, friendships, skills and fraternity\u201d.<\/p>\n Delia and John Weedon said the group use one of their tracks to access the land but they haven\u2019t been any trouble. Photograph: Francesca Jones\/The Guardian<\/p>\n However, in a recent article, Birkett invoked the \u201cgreat replacement\u201d conspiracy theory, claiming that \u201cthose in power\u201d are \u201cintentionally replacing one population with another\u201d, and that \u201cwhite Europeans are being outbred\u201d by migrants.<\/p>\n Last week, dozens of videos on TWI\u2019s YouTube channel in which Birkett talks about his political views, including how he hopes Llanafan Fawr will become a \u201cbeacon surrounded by darkness where every other town around becomes more diverse, more corrupt\u201d, appeared to have been taken down.<\/p>\n It is unclear whether William Jones, the farmer who sold the land to Birkett, knew about his buyer\u2019s background in advance. Jones could not be reached, and his wife, Joanne, declined to comment.<\/p>\n A few miles away in Builth Wells, the nearest town to tiny Llanafan Fawr, reaction to TWI\u2019s presence was mixed.<\/p>\n Leigh Price, the owner of survivalist shop the Bug Out, said several members of TWI had bought supplies and equipment from him, and Birkett had been in touch by phone to ask advice about where to find building materials locally.<\/p>\n skip past newsletter promotion<\/a><\/p>\n Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what\u2019s happening and why it matters<\/p>\n Privacy Notice: <\/strong>Newsletters may contain info about charities, online ads, and content funded by outside parties. For more information see our Privacy Policy<\/a>. We use Google reCaptcha to protect our website and the Google Privacy Policy<\/a> and Terms of Service<\/a> apply.<\/p>\n after newsletter promotion<\/p>\n \u201cAll this white supremacist stuff is nonsense. I don\u2019t think you can be right wing or say anything much these days without getting outlawed as a far-right group,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Jamie Owen, a bartender at the 14th-century Fountain Inn, said he was taken aback to find out about TWI. \u201cWhy here in Builth? They\u2019re not local,\u201d he said. \u201cI would hope they\u2019d get short shrift if they came into town.\u201d<\/p>\n A shop owner on the high street, who asked not to be named, said: \u201cI can imagine there will be some people here who welcome them. All I hear about from customers and in the pub is Reform, Reform, Reform, immigrants \u2026 Even though we don\u2019t really have many in Builth.\u201d<\/p>\n Builth Wells mayor Mark Hammond at the council offices in Strand Hall, which also has a concert hall. He said he hopes TWI keep to themselves. Photograph: Francesca Jones\/The Guardian<\/p>\n Mayor Mark Hammond said that he hoped TWI would keep to themselves. \u201cThis part of Powys is very independent-minded, very mixed, politically. They may well get some support here, but if they cause any issues for the farmers or people who are very protective of the Welsh rural culture, then I can see there being some backlash.\u201d<\/p>\n According to Hope Not Hate senior researcher David Lawrence, the far right in Britain has long dreamed of establishing whites-only communities, and similar efforts have been pursued by Combat 18, the British National Party, and the now-proscribed terrorist organisation National Action.<\/p>\n \u201cThese initiatives face significant financial and logistical challenges, and most have either failed to materialise, fractured due to internal conflict, or been abandoned due to dismal conditions and the property sold off,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n