Chedhams Yard to open for free every Saturday

Chedhams Yard in Wellebourne is set to reopen later this month with visitors encouraged to visit the site for free on Saturdays throughout the year.

The former blacksmiths and wheelwrights, on Church Walk, had been operated by the Chedham family for around 150 years, when it was offered to the parish council in 2002 by Bill Chedham on his retirement.

It had become overgrown and derelict since the mid-1960s and the parish council decided to enter it into the BBC Restoration Village programme in 2006.

The site won the programme and a £1 million restoration was finally completed in 2012 when it was opened to the public.

During the work the 4,000 artefacts that had been found in the yard were cleaned, photographed and replaced in their original position.

Today the yard is run entirely by a group of enthusiastic volunteers and to celebrate ten years since Chedhams Yard won the prize, free entry is being offered to all visitors on a Saturday in 2016.

It now has a purpose built visitor centre, where light refreshments are always available along with a small selection of books pictures while there is also a working blacksmiths forge and wheelwrights.

Each Saturday throughout the year there will be a themed event, and the yard will reopen on 30 April at 10am.