National Trust in the Midlands

Celebrate World Book Day with Us!

Step into a world of stories and imagination this weekend at Biddulph Grange Garden and The Children's Country House at Sudbury NT

🎭 Dress-Up Fun – Come as your favorite storybook character! Plus, at Biddulph Grange Garden, every child in fancy dress gets a lucky dip prize!
📖 Storytelling Sessions – Settle in for enchanting tales from the storytellers at The Children’s Country House.
🎨 Book-Themed Crafts – Let your creativity run wild with story-inspired activities at both locations.

https://rebrand.ly/BiddulphWorldBookDay
https://rebrand.ly/CCHWorldBookDay

Exciting news! Grantham House will be opening its gates to visitors soon and we are putting together a very special team of people who want to be at its heart - our volunteers.

Want to be part of the next chapter of Grantham House? Join us a a volunteer and you'll be there from the very start of this incredible new journey, offering an oasis of heritage and nature in the centre of Grantham.

There are many ways to get involved. We're keen to hear from people interested in joining us as welcome volunteers, business services, and in the bookshop. Find out more and to apply: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/support-us/volunteer

With spring in the air, it's great to see so many of our four-legged friends out and about. But, as this week marks the start of ground-nesting bird breeding season, our rangers are reminding owners to ensure their pets remain on leads and to stick to marked routes.

Today is and the intrepid willow warbler, a ground nesting bird that arrives at NT Kinver Edge and the Rock Houses each spring, flies more than 8,000 kilometres (5,000 miles) from Africa to the UK.

Along with many other migratory birds, the willow warbler makes this epic journey to find food and to breed. The UK’s warm, wet summers and long days provide parents with more insects and time to feed their growing chicks, before they return to warmer climes in the autumn.

Birds that make their nests, lay eggs and raise their chicks on the ground, including the willow warbler, tree pipit and chiffchaff, can easily be disturbed and distressed by dogs roaming off designated paths.

As March to July is the breeding season for so many species, it's really important to keep your dog on a lead at this time, to minimise disturbance and help nature to thrive. You can find out more about visiting our places with your dog on our webpages.

Willow warbler ©National Trust Images/Nick Upton
A sign advising dogs to be kept on leads at Kinver Edge ©National Trust Images/Pat Rodwell
Chiffchaff ©National Trust Images/Rob Coleman

Happy St David’s Day to all who celebrate 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

The glorious national flower of Wales is starting to make an appearance across the Midlands, let us know where daffodils are blooming near you.

The team at Mr Straw's House NT are looking forward to welcoming visitors back next week following their annual conservation programme.

After its winter closure, the house reopens a week today (6 March). Tucked away in a quiet cul-de-sac in Worksop, this extraordinary gem provides the perfect chance to step back in time to the 1920s and get a glimpse of what life might have been like back then for a grocer's family. Treasured possessions and everyday domestic items remain exactly where their owners left them all those years ago.

The house will open on Thursdays and Fridays, 9am to 3pm. Bookings can be made four weeks in advance at www.nationaltrust.org.uk/mr-straws-house If you can't visit on a weekday, the house will also open on Saturdays through June and again on Saturdays in September.

Images: National Trust / Chris Lacey / Tammy Herd
The main picture is of the outside of Mr Straw's House - a red brick semi-detached house. Picture 2 is of a hallway with a coat and hat rack overfilled with coats and hats, left by their owners decades ago. Picture 3 is of a sitting room filled with dark period furniture, pictures and portraits. Picture 4 is of Florence Straw's dressing table filled with her personal belongings.

New exhibition is just days away.

As Belton Estate NT reopens the mansion on Saturday after its winter conservation programme, a brand new exhibition is to be unveiled.

Visitors will be able to explore previously unseen items from Belton’s collection as part of the new exhibition Artistic Journeys: Crafting a New Narrative. It celebrates arts and design with a focus on pioneering creative women from Belton’s past: Marian Alford, Elizabeth Cust, Nina Cust, and Sophia Cust.

Special highlights to look out for this year in the Artistic Journeys exhibition include collection items relating to Pride and Prejudice’s author Jane Austen in June to celebrate 250 years since her birth. There are also plans to feature a wedding dress designed by Mary Donan and worn by Caroline Cust in autumn.

Check out Belton Estate NT for all the details.

Exciting news!

From 1 March, Stoneywell will be open once again on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays.

Book your visit to see this hidden gem in Leicestershire. An arts and crafts family home with quirky rooms filled with family treasure and original furniture, nestled in the heart of the countryside, it's a must-see this spring and summer.

https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/leicestershire-northamptonshire/stoneywell

If you've not visited Calke for a while, you're in for a treat. After a 24-week restoration project, the Baroque façade of Calke Abbey has been unveiled and the west and south fronts of the house are looking grand once more.

The restoration, which included work on the first and second-floor windows and walls, has been completed. Repairs started in July to replace the rotten sections of all 65 window frames, repair cracked panes of glass, fill in fine cracks on rendered areas of the house and pin loose stone in place.

The historic fabric of the exterior was retained where possible and sections beyond repair were replaced with oak timber from the Calke estate and Peak Moor Stone from Derbyshire to match the original colour and character.

A huge thank you to all our supporters! Whether you visited, donated or purchased a mansion pin badge, it’s down to your help that we can carry out vital conservation work to continue caring for this historic country house.

National Trust pictures:
Three images of the exterior of Calke Abbey gleaming in the sunshine. A fourth picture shows the exterior of Calke hidden behind scaffolding as work took place to restore it.

As we approach the end of winter, spring is slowly starting to emerge, and the weather is becoming warmer. Now is a great time to put your boots on and get outdoors.

Check out the walks at the places we care for across the Midlands and give them a go https://rebrand.ly/himtofm

We recommend the tea-rooms too!

Big changes are underway! Over the past few months, we've been excitedly watching the developing nature reserve at NT Sandilands on the Lincolnshire coast take shape and come to life.🌾🌊

Much work has taken place. Sandilands has been landscaped, the boardwalks and bridges are in place and the first bird hide has been installed.

We'll also soon see areas of native scrub planting and the creation of wetland and sand dune habitats. It's set to become a real haven for wildlife as well as a place for people to enjoy nature and the big outdoors.

Thanks to contractor, Casey, for these images that show just some of the work that has been taking place over the winter. The project is developing fast and the latest film footage from Casey follows soon, so watch this space.

Travel back to the Tudor period at Greyfriars House & Garden as part of the Living History in Worcester weekend taking place on the 22 and 23 of February.

Meet the Lyppett household of reenactors as they bring the past to life inside the House, and mark Valentine’s Day Tudor style. Have a go at making love spells and potions, write love letters with a scribe, and find out how to prepare for a Tudor wedding.

Living History in Worcester is a weekend packed with multi-period living history at 6 city-centre sites including Greyfriars, Tudor House, Worcester’s Guildhall, The Commandery, Cathedral Square and St Helens.

Find out more and plan your visit via the Greyfriars website - www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/worcestershire-herefordshire/greyfriars-house-and-garden

This is your sign to pause and take a mindful moment during a busy half-term, working week, or just a moment to be calm during the day.

Do you have a favourite National Trust place where you can find a moment of peacefulness or stillness?

📍 Dudmaston Estate NT Belton Estate NT Upton House and Gardens NT Clumber Park NT NT Croome

We’re all set to throw open the doors and welcome new and returning visitors to The Workhouse & Infirmary this Wednesday (19 February).

The brand new season begins with a family-friendly trail 'The Workhouse Whodunit' and some fun-filled 'Tales from The Workhouse' featuring costumed characters.

Looking ahead, don’t miss the Wellness Walks on the last Friday of each month — and get ready for the return of the weekly Becher Walks this March. Check out The Workhouse & Infirmary website for all the details.