Community-spirited employees at our Guernsey offices recently gave up their weekend to lend a hand to a clearance project which has unexpectedly unearthed a piece of island heritage.

Whilst trying to provide a local housing association site (La Nouvelle Maraitaine) with some much-needed outdoor space on the site of a filled-in 19th-century quarry, volunteers uncovered the remains of a previously forgotten 17th/18th-century farmhouse.

Local historians and archaeologists have been consulted and think that parts of the farmhouse could possibly date from anywhere between 1650 and 1787, with the quarry itself possibly having been established in the late 1800s.

Aspida staff (working with volunteers from community group Art of Living) spent their Saturday clearing trees and undergrowth from the site to improve access.

A social committee was formed by Aspida employees shortly after the group merged with the idea of organizing a variety of events which could provide team-building activities, but also allow Aspida to support community concerns in Guernsey. Activities so far have included bell ringing and a charity bake-off.