Share your story

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WE NEED YOU: HISTORY CALLOUT!
We would love to find out more about the modern history of The Barn and how it has been seen / used by the local community. As part of our research into the History of the Barn and its use, both recent and medieval,  we would love to hear about any memories or stories of the site during this time.
Do you remember what was growing in the fields around WW2? 
Did you grow up in and around Winterbourne and have any stories to share about the site? 
Do you have memories of playing in The Barn when it was unoccupied, or perhaps remember it as a working farm and can remember where things were stored or what was going in and out of The Barn? 
Do you have any photos of the site before it was renovated, or perhaps of some of our early events? 
We would love to hear from you! 
Some of our friendly volunteers will be collecting any stories / copies of photographs / recording any items you would like to share during the Open Day. The aim is to help fill in some of the missing history about The Barn, so we would love it if you would like to come and be involved.
If you can’t make it to the open day, but would still like to share your story with us, then please email it to us at contact@winterbournebarn.org.uk 

Pop along at anytime on Sunday 27th April between 1 – 4pm. There is no need to book.

To find out more about the Open Day, or any of the other events we have on at The Barn please visit https://www.winterbournebarn.org.uk/events/

Come and see us at our next volunteer open evening – Thurs 23rd Jan 6-8pm

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Do you want to try something new this year? Do you have skills you would like to use outside of your “day job”? Are you looking to meet new people and join our friendly, social and inclusive team?

Would you like to develop some new skills? Do you want to be a part of keeping a historical building alive?

Winterbourne Medieval Barn is run almost entirely by volunteers, so if there is something you are interested in getting involved with then we most likely have a volunteer role to suit you!

From gardening, AV at live events, stage set-up, welcoming visitors, running our bar, site maintenance or event management – we have something for most! Lots of our events require multiple volunteers which means you can sign up as a couple/pair/group and volunteer together.

We are an inclusive, very friendly team and offer a dedicated volunteer contact, training and support along with regular social events for our volunteer team.

Interested?

Come along to our Volunteer Open Evening on Thursday 23rd January 6pm – 8pm.

Join us for a look around our beautiful heritage site and have a chat to some of our friendly current volunteers about the wide variety of opportunities here at The Barn.

Tea, coffee & biscuits provided. Parking available on site.

For an informal chat about our opportunities or to discuss getting involved if you need any additional support, please contact Louise Barnett on volunteercoordinator@winterbournebarn.org.uk

Statement from Trustees

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STATEMENT ON BEHALF OF THE TRUSTEES OF WINTERBOURNE MEDIEVAL BARN

5 JULY 2023

Following significant renovation works, Winterbourne Medieval Barn Trust (WMBT) became the Leaseholder of the Barn complex, which is owned by South Gloucestershire Council (SGC).

The continued preservation of the Barn is enabled by a commercial operation which hires out the venue for events, and licences other entities to operate from the Barn premises. In line with WMBT’s charitable aims, these are small artisan businesses, and as the brewing of beer and making of cider are traditional rural activities, 3 Engineers Brewery (3EB) fitted this broad remit, and on 1st July 2020 became a Licensee of Unit 1 of the Cow Byres, permitted to brew beer on site.

3EB requested permission to open a “taproom” within the Unit, and WMBT agreed the sale of beer brewed by 3EB and one local cider, in line with the traditions of the area, and also soft drinks and pre-packaged snacks. 3EB then unilaterally added the retail sale of wine to their offer, breaching the conditions of their Licence, and also without consulting WMBT as the Premises Alcohol Licence holder.

When this became apparent to WMBT, 3EB were asked to remove this offer, and when the breach of the Licence became persistent, a meeting was arranged for 24th November 2022 that re-stated the limitation of the Licence agreement. 3EB continue to challenge the terms of the Licence and

on June 3rd the Licence extension for 2023 was returned with a handwritten statement that rejected the terms of the Licence, so in fact 3EB had decided not to continue operating from the WMBT premises. WMBT offered an interim extension to enable the packing up of the operation, and to enable a new Licensee to be sourced, but the deadline for agreement passed with no meaningful response.

No Licence was agreed, the last “taproom” session was on Wednesday 28th June, and on Saturday 1st July the 3EB Licence came to an end, though equipment is still on site in the North Yard.

WMBT has successfully operated other Licence agreements and will continue to deliver the range of events that ensure the future preservation of the Barn, follow the Business Plan agreed with SGC and the National Lottery and provide a cultural asset to the local community.

We hope this has been useful background, and an alternative perspective to the views and comments you may have already heard or read.

Now Recruiting – Duty Managers

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The Trust is recruiting a small pool of casual staff to act as Event Duty Managers. Duty Managers will cover events that take place during the day and evening on week days and weekends. These events vary, from Trust led activities such as concerts, workshops, and family events, to private hires including Weddings and Private Parties.

The full job description is below to read and download.

To apply please email your CV and a brief covering letter to Hazel Hatton, Business & Development Manager hazel.hatton@winterbournebarn.org.uk. Hazel will also be happy to answer any questions you might have about the role.

Duty-ManagerDownload

Volunteer With Us

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At Winterbourne Medieval Barn so much of what we do is thanks to our dedicated team of volunteers.  Recently refurbished to a very high standard the Barn and grounds are a popular heritage centre at the heart of the community.

A wide range of volunteer opportunities are on offer and all with the flexibility to fit with your commitment and interests.

From welcoming our visitors, stewarding at events, assisting at our workshops or tending the walled garden in our beautiful rural setting, every single volunteer makes a valuable difference.

As our community events programme is increasing, we are currently keen to recruit more volunteers to our events, publicity and audio visual team so if you have experience in these areas please get in touch.

Some of the benefits of volunteering at the Barn include: free access to a range of events when on duty.  External and in-house training in first aid, presentation skills, safeguarding and social media.  Social trips to other heritage sites, regular volunteer meet-ups and an annual festive ‘thank you’ quiz night.

Our opportunities are open to people aged 18 and over, from all backgrounds and experience levels.  We particularly encourage applications from people of Black, Asian and other UK minority communities as these groups are currently under-represented in the heritage sector.

Click here to go to our Volunteer Portal to see our existing volunteer opportunities.

In addition to these opportunities we are also looking to recruit a Volunteer Coordinator, and Volunteer Keyholders. Please click the links to find out more about these specific roles

If you would like to find out more, please get in touch at contact@winterbournebarn.org.uk and we will get back to you to arrange a time to invite you to the Barn.

Day 4: The Egg Dance

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It’s day 4 of our Medieval Movement Week and today it’s Egg Dance day. We’re taking inspiration from an old dancing game where eggs would be placed on the ground, and you would have to hop and dance around them without breaking any.

Send us any clips of you dancing along at home! events@winterbournebarn.org.uk

The music from our videos this week is courtesy of A Merrie Noyse. You can listen to more of their tracks on Spotify and find them online: www.merrienoyse.com

Day 3: Dance of the Wild Thing

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Today’s dance is inspired by the tale of King Charles VI of France who entertained wedding guests by dressing up as a Wodewose (a wild man of the forest). Unfortunately, their costumes set on fire as they were dancing and the King had to be extinguished by a lady’s large skirt. We’re going a bit interpretive today…so let your inner wild thing out!

Send us any clips of you dancing along at home! events@winterbournebarn.org.uk

We welcome any donations through our Just Giving page: www.justgiving.com/winterbourne-medievalbarntrust

The music from our videos this week is courtesy of A Merrie Noyse. You can listen to more of their tracks on Spotify and find them online: www.merrienoyse.com

Day 2: The Salterello

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It’s day 2 of our Medieval Movement Week and today we’re learning a twist on the Salterello, a hoppy dance from the 1400’s.

Send us any clips of you dancing along at home! events@winterbournebarn.org.uk

The music from our videos this week is courtesy of A Merrie Noyse. You can listen to more of their tracks on Spotify and find them online: www.merrienoyse.com

Medieval Movement Week!

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Ever wanted to know what dance was like back in medieval times? Now’s your chance to find out as we move like medieval folk!

We’ll learn a section of dance each day before putting them together in a finale routine at the end of the week. Each day has a different theme, all inspired by medieval dances, or stories from the time. Today is day 1 and we’re learning a Carole, or circle dance!

Send us any clips of you dancing along at home! events@winterbournebarn.org.uk

We welcome any donations through our Just Giving page: www.justgiving.com/winterbourne-medievalbarntrust

The music from our videos this week is courtesy of A Merrie Noyse. You can listen to more of their tracks on Spotify and find them online: www.merrienoyse.com

The Dinner Party!

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We’ve spent the week getting ready for our Medieval Dinner Party at Home and now it’s time to eat!

Please do share your creations with us on Facebook, we’d love to see them!

These videos are free, although we warmly welcome donations to our Just Giving page here.