Welcome to Woodchester Mansion
A unique unfinished Victorian Gothic house hidden in a beautiful Cotswold valley
Now closed for the Winter
Our next Public Open Day is Friday 26th March 2027
We look forward to welcoming you then
For all enquiries, please email: info@woodchestermansion.org.uk
The house like no other…
Woodchester Mansion is a unique and amazing Grade I listed Victorian Gothic house hidden in a beautiful Cotswold valley.
It is an unfinished masterpiece. Building started about 1857, but stopped in the mid-1860s so floors and ceilings are missing, walls not plastered and windows unglazed. All the secrets of the construction of the Mansion are visible – something visitors will never see in another country house.
The Mansion was designed by a young local architect, Benjamin Bucknall from Rodborough. He produced a unique Gothic Revival house which blends the local traditional work in limestone with the ideas of the French architectural thinker Viollet-le-Duc.
If you have a serious interest in the Mansion and its history we have a book.
The quality of the craftsmanship is outstanding: some stone carvings are inspired by the plants in the surrounding valley and others are life-like images of animals. There are also real mammals to be seen as the Mansion houses breeding colonies of Greater and Lesser Horseshoe bats. Both the animal carvings and the bats are fun for kids!
Owned by Stroud District Council, the Mansion is managed by the Woodchester Mansion Trust (it is NOT a National Trust property). On Open Days visitors can see how the house was built, admire the fine carvings and look at the bats on CCTV. Refreshments are available, we have a gift shop and the surrounding Woodchester Park (National Trust) can be explored. It is also possible to arrange private tours and hire of the Mansion.
Latest News & Events
Acapellies Choir
Come and join this local community choir in the uniquely resonant spaces of Woodchester Mansion for an evening of seasonal polyphonic choral music.
Performances are at 5:30pm and 7pm on Saturday 19th December. Adult tickets £20 Minibus available from car park.
Stone Carving Workshops
Our popular STONE CARVING WORKSHOPS with master mason and experienced tutor Paul Maggs have finished for this year. We’ve released the dates for 2027 – Saturdays 17th April, 15th May, 12th June, 10th July, 21st August, 18th September and 16th October. Read more to find out about costs and booking.
Woodchester Bat Experiences
BAT EXPERIENCES 2027 We have now released dates for next year: 4th May, 11th June, 18th June, 25th June, 2nd July, 9th July, 23rd July, 30th July, 6th August, 20th August and 3rd September. The cost for the evening is £35pp. Join this very special opportunity to observe our rare horseshoe bats close up. The experiences are popular – book as soon as possible!
Volunteers Needed
We’re looking for new volunteers – all ages, all skills welcome! For our open days this year we need minibus drivers, reception & ticket desk volunteers, and new tour guides . We also need volunteers for routine maintenance around the Mansion. Come and join our friendly and enthusiastic group of local helpers.
Café Opening
We’re thrilled that HENRY’S BAKEHOUSE CAFÉ from Minchinhampton will be with us again in 2026 with their delicious range of quality coffees, teas, cakes and lunches. HENRY’S @ WOODCHESTER will be open 11-5pm Fri, Sat, Sun on Mansion Open Days, including bank holidays. Everyone welcome – come along, bring your dog, sit and eat!
Grant Award
We’re delighted to have been awarded a grant of £154,729 from The National Lottery Heritage Fund for securing the future of Woodchester Mansion and its environment. PRESS RELEASE
We’re supported by
Things to see and do at Woodchester Mansion
THE RELUCTANT VAMPIRE – NOW on BBC1!
We were thrilled to host the filming of THE RELUCTANT VAMPIRE at the Mansion last autumn. It was the reason we couldn’t put on our Halloween Spooky Cellars last year – as a small charity, we just didn’t have the capacity to cope with both. Filming started as soon as we closed on 31st Oct and continued until Christmas.
You can see the series on Sundays on BBC1 and on BBC iPlayer NOW, and next year you can come and visit the Mansion and see the rooms used for the Vampire’s castle.
Conservation of the Drawing Room Bay Window
This project is now finished. Water ingress was causing damage to the vault inside. The original corrugated asbestos roofing has been replaced and the leaky gutters repaired and re-connected to the two eagle gargoyles – which, due to the lovely summer weather, haven’t seen much action this year.
Private Tours
Do you belong to a local organisation? We run private tours of the Mansion for groups of at least 12 people. You’ll be collected from the car park, have your own tour guide and the Mansion to yourself. Tea, coffee and home-made cake are also available. Your group can visit from Tuesday to Sunday in November and March, and Tues/Weds/Thurs in the 2027 summer season.
The Mansion in 2027
Next year we plan to be open every Friday, Saturday and Sunday from Friday 26th March (Good Friday) to Sunday 31st October, 11am – 5pm.
We will also be open on Bank Holiday Mondays:
Easter Monday on 29th March
Early May Bank Holiday on 3rd May
Spring Bank Holiday on 31st May
Summer Bank Holiday on 30th August
Our public Open Days include the option of a guided tour, or visiting the house at your own pace, and refreshments in our cafe.
Finding Us
As you can see from the picture above, the Mansion (centre) is hidden deep in a beautiful Cotswold valley.
Please use the NT Buckholt car park at Woodchester Park, just off the B4066 Selsley – Uley road close to Coaley Peak (though the Mansion is NOT an NT property). There’s an hourly minibus service to the Mansion from this car park only on the hour 11am – 4pm.
Please see the How to Find Us page so you have an easy journey. It’s best not to use our postcode in your satnav, as it can take you to the wrong end of the valley where there’s no access.
Spooky Cellars 2026
Click to see some images from this year’s great display!
Grants
Thanks to a grant from SVTEC (the Stroud Vintage Transport and Engine Club) we are now able to offer visitors who have problems managing stairs the option of a video tour of the upper floors of the Mansion.
Mansion Café
HENRY’S @ WOODCHESTER
Henry’s Bakehouse from Minchinhampton manage our cafe.
They offer coffees, snacks, brunches, teas and DELICIOUS cakes
