Higham Hall

12/06/2026

🎉 Under one month to go until we open our doors for our very first Open Day as part of our 50th anniversary celebrations at Higham Hall!

📅 Saturday 11 July
🕙 10am – 3pm

Come and spend the day exploring our beautiful historic Hall and grounds while discovering everything Higham has to offer. Visitors can:

✨ Explore the elegant period building and stunning gardens
🎨 Meet tutors and find out about upcoming courses and creative retreats
🖌️ Try hands-on arts and crafts taster sessions
🎶 Enjoy an outdoor concert from Higham Hall’s Wind Serenades ensemble at 2pm
📖 Discover the Hall’s fascinating history in a special exhibition
🤝 Learn more about our vibrant community
☕ Treat yourself to tea, coffee, homemade cakes and biscuits throughout the day, plus light lunches served from 12pm–3pm
🌿 Pick up our new garden guide and family activity trail for younger visitors

We can’t wait to welcome you for this special celebration!

10/06/2026

🪑 INTRODUCTION TO UPHOLSTERY 🪑
📅 Monday 6 July 2026

Join tutor Cathy Newbery for a hands-on introduction to upholstery and learn how to restore a small item of furniture such as a dining chair, stool, or drop-in seat.

You’ll learn how to:
✨ Strip back furniture
✨ Tackle interior paddings
✨ Rebuild using traditional or modern upholstery techniques

Bring along:
✔️ Your furniture item
✔️ Your chosen fabric

Cathyprovide all fillings, specialist tools, technical materials, and expert guidance.

To make the most of your course, Cathy will contact you before the session to discuss your project needs.

🎟️ BOOK ONLINE: https://www.trybooking.com/uk/FYMB

Learn to strip a small item of furniture (e.g. a drop in dining seat or dining chair, stool), tackle interior paddings and rebuild it using...

08/06/2026

Today marks the start of National Bike Week here in the UK — and what better time for a throwback to last summer!

One of the students attending Louise Latham’s Chamber Music Summer School arrived by bike… with his cello in tow!

A wonderful combination of music, determination, and sustainable travel that certainly turned a few heads when he arrived.

Have you ever travelled somewhere unusual with a musical instrument?

05/06/2026

🌿 Volunteer in the Garden This June! 🌿

Join Head Gardener Sean Hannah on 22nd, 23rd and 24th June for a rewarding hands-on experience in the garden.

Help with a variety of seasonal tasks, including:
- Turning compost bins
- Raking and collecting meadow grass
- Lifting Camassias for autumn replanting
- Tackling garden thugs such as brambles, ground elder and winter heliotrope

Whether you're keen to learn new gardening skills, connect with nature, or enjoy being part of a friendly team, we'd love to have you involved.

📅 Sessions: 9:00am – 4:00pm
👥 Maximum of 5 volunteers per session

Meals will be provided, and accommodation may be available (subject to availability).

If you'd like to lend a hand, please contact the office to register your interest.

📞017687 76276
💻 [email protected]

03/06/2026

🔨Make Your Own Quality Leather Belt

Join Roslyn Whiting from Wednesday 1 – Friday 3 July 2026 for a hands-on leatherworking course where you’ll create your own made-to-measure leather belt using the traditional hand-stitched saddle stitch technique.

You’ll learn the finishing touches that make a truly quality belt, with a choice of beautiful leathers and buckles to personalise your design.

Prefer something different? You can also personalise your project with hand-tooled designs, or choose to make a pair of coasters or a decorative picture instead.

For more information and to book your place, visit:

Create your own leather made to measure belt using the traditional method of hand-stitching the saddle stitch. You will learn the finishing touches that make a quality belt. There will […]

02/06/2026

🧵✨ Patchwork: Appliqué From the Reverse ✨🧵

📅 Saturday 27 – Tuesday 30 June 2026
👩‍🏫 Tutor: Lis Binns

Discover the creative technique of reverse appliqué in this inspiring four-day patchwork course. Using a pre-printed panel, you'll create the illusion of a view through a window by adding a window frame and surround. You'll then have time to quilt your design and complete it as a beautiful wall hanging.

Suitable for all abilities – whether you're new to patchwork or an experienced quilter looking to try something different.

Residential: £505
Non-residential: £345

Join us for a relaxing and rewarding few days of stitching, creativity, and quilting inspiration!

01/06/2026

Today marks the start of National Volunteers’ Week, giving us the perfect opportunity to say a huge thank you to our amazing team of hardworking volunteers. 👏

From essential maintenance and decorating to gardening and minibus driving, their time, skills, and dedication help keep everything running smoothly — and we’re incredibly grateful for all they do.

If you would like to join our friendly volunteer team, we’d love to hear from you!

Contact us here:
https://highamhall.com/contact/

29/05/2026

Combine a Lake District getaway with learning something new.

Discover the landscape through our fieldtrip residential courses:

🌳 An Introduction to Trees
📅 23–26 June 2026

🪨 Ancient Rocks of Lakeland
📅 23–26 July 2026

🌸 Visiting Lakeland Gardens
📅 13–16 September 2026

🪖 WWII on the Solway
📅 14–17 July 2026

Explore, learn, and enjoy the beauty of the Lakes.

👉 Find out more: https://highamhall.com/our-courses/

27/05/2026

New for 2026: WWII On The Solway

📅 Tuesday 14 – Friday 17 July 2026

Step back into the wartime history of the Solway with this immersive new course led by WW2 expert John Sadler and Solway coast specialist Fiona Stoddart.

Over two and a half days of field trips, explore fascinating WWII sites across northwest Cumbria and Dumfries & Galloway, discovering how the war shaped the lives of local communities and those brought to the area through the war effort.

Alongside guided visits, enjoy engaging lecture sessions and the opportunity to study — and even try out — authentic WWII uniforms, field gear, weapons and kit.

Find out more and how to book here: https://highamhall.com/course/wwii-on-the-solway/

26/05/2026

Do you have any special memories of Higham? Perhaps you came here when it was a youth hostel in the 1950s, or knew the place when it was a girls school between 1956-74. Maybe you attended some of our early courses, training days or celebrated ‘special evenings’ with dinner followed by music or poetry readings. Or did you work here? If so we’d like to hear from you! 2026 is our 50th anniversary as an adult education college so we are collecting stories about Higham over the years. Please share this post, add a comment or email us at [email protected] Thanks!