Description: Crowle Court barn is a late medieval limestone barn, which has three bays of roof surviving to the northern end. Initially it was thought to have been re-roofed c AD 1800.

Issue: The building had become derelict and there was a proposal to demolish it.

Strategy: In order to assess the importance of the surviving fabric of this barn, structural recording and tree-ring dating was carried out. Tree-ring dating showed the survival of one truss dating to AD 1354-6, and two further trusses dated to winter or early spring AD 1589/90.

Outcome: The tree-ring dating demonstrated the importance of the remaining fabric, in particular showing that the suspected re-roofing of c AD 1800 actually occurred in AD 1589/90. Consequently, the significance of Crowle Court Barn was recognised in a public enquiry the building has not been demolished. This case study highlights the importance of having information before key decisions are made.