All Saints Church, Newland, Guided Tour

All Saints' Church, Newland, Coleford, Gloucestershire, GL16 8NP

Guided tour with one of the trustees of the church exploring the wealth of history of the "Cathedral of the Forest" founded in the 13th century.…

Guided tour with one of the trustees of the church exploring the wealth of history of the "Cathedral of the Forest" founded in the 13th century. Highlights include the freeminer brass, the tavern clock and the collection of Beryl Dean textiles.

Opening Times

• Saturday 8 September: Tour 1400

Booking Details

No booking required

Additional information

Limited parking is available by the almshouses or in the village. The friends will be offering refreshments. Check out the Ostrich Inn opposite for some fine local fare.

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Berry Hill Community Orchard Guided Walk

Lakers Road, Five Acres, Berry Hill, Coleford, Gloucestershire, GL16 7QT

Learn about this extraordinary community success story. Join Rewild's Scott to find out about the planting following forest design and…

Learn about this extraordinary community success story.
Join Rewild's Scott to find out about the planting following forest design and permaculture principles. Planting has included fifteen rare heritage variety fruit trees with great names like ‘Broxwood Foxwhelp’, ‘Hendry Huffcap’ and ‘Shit Smock’. There are also more common but productive fruit trees including apple, pear, plum and cherry and also over forty soft fruit bushes and nitrogen fixing shrubs. In addition there is a ground cover of mint and comfrey as well as flower beds for pollinators and benches.
The Campaign to Protect Rural England, awarded the orchard as ‘a project at the heart of the community, devised and implemented by volunteers of all ages and abilities, which recognises historical context, is simple in design, enhances biodiversity, and provides opportunity for a greater understanding of the world around in the Forest of Dean.’

Opening Times

• Thursday 6 September: 1800-1900

Booking Details

No booking required

Directions

The Community Orchard is situated in the village of Berry Hill on the corner of Lakers Road and Nine Wells Road

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Broadwell: Revisiting the Incomplete History

Evergreen Hall, Church Walk, Broadwell, Coleford, Gloucestershire, GL16 7BN

Did you take part in Broadwell's Evergreen Hall 125th anniversary last year? Do your recollections form part of this archive? Pop in to find out…

Did you take part in Broadwell's Evergreen Hall 125th anniversary last year? Do your recollections form part of this archive? Pop in to find out what pieces of the jigsaw that is Broadwell's history have been gathered so far. Would you like to contribute? Would you like an update on the story so far? Soundwork's Roger Drury brings you this event in conjunction with the Foresters' Forest project.

Opening Times

• Thursday 6 September: 1400

Booking Details

No booking required

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Coleford Heritage Quest

Tourist Information Centre, 4 Lords Hill, Coleford, Gloucestershire, GL16 8BD

To mark the 50th Anniversary of the Conservation Area, this self guided walk has been devised to show some of the interesting buildings within…

To mark the 50th Anniversary of the Conservation Area, this self guided walk has been devised to show some of the interesting buildings within (and just outside) the Coleford Conservation area. Highlights include the Clock Tower, St John the Baptist Church and the Mushet murals.

Opening Times

• Thursday 6 September: 1000-1500
• Friday 7 September: 1000-1500
• Saturday 8 September: 1000-1500

Booking Details

No booking required

Access Information

Although Coleford Town Centre can take wheelchairs, please note that there are quite a few hills on this walk which may be a problem to those with mobility difficulties or in wheelchairs. Disabled car parking spaces available in both car parks. Toilets are available in the public car park opposite the Co-op. The Tourist Information Centre accepts all dogs.

Additional information

Please take care as there will be vehicles moving. Refreshments are available in the Town Centre, and public toilets in the paid-for car park opposite the Co-op. The Tourist Information Centre accepts dogs.

Directions

The Tourist Information Centre is at the traffic lights opposite the Police Station. It sits next to a free car park (do not park in the blue spaces), and a larger car park is available nearby which has a small charge.

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Deputy Gaveller’s Office

Bank House, Bank Street, Coleford, Gloucestershire, GL16 8BA

This is a rare opportunity to meet the Deputy Gaveller and discuss his work. The Deputy Gaveller maintains the official register of free miners…

This is a rare opportunity to meet the Deputy Gaveller and discuss his work. The Deputy Gaveller maintains the official register of free miners and is responsible for the administration and collection of mineral royalties from the worked gales. A gale is within the Hundred of St Briavels and may cover coal, stone, iron ore & ochre. It is worked by a freeminer. To become a freeminer one must have been born within the Hundred of St Briavels and worked a year and a day in a gale. Visits approximately 1 hour. Not suitable for children.

Opening Times

• Thursday 6 September: 1000, 1130, 1330, 1500
• Friday 7 September: 1000, 1130, 1330, 1500

Booking Details

No booking required

Access Information

No wheelchair access. The office is accessed via some narrow stairs.

Additional information

Max 4 people per tour/session. The Deputy Gaveller's Office is located within the historic Bank House, the local head quarters for the Forestry Commission.

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Forest of Dean Geo Map

New Fancy View, Speech House Road, Coleford, Gloucestershire, GL15 4HD

Unique geological map of the Forest of Dean created from the stones that underlay the soil. It uses 15 different rocks from working and disused…

Unique geological map of the Forest of Dean created from the stones that underlay the soil. It uses 15 different rocks from working and disused local quarries. Quarries, iron & coal mines are marked on it highlighting both industrial history and geology. This project won a prestigious ENI Geological Challenge Award in 2008. Hear how the project was created and the challenges that faced the team. Stand on the map to admire it as Goshawks circle in the sky above. Learn about the monument to New Fancy Colliery on the site.

Opening Times

• Thursday 6 September: 1200-1500

Booking Details

No booking required

Access Information

Wheelchair access information: gentle slope on open countryside, no tarmac only stoned and rolled pathways.

Additional information

Geomap celebrates both the geological and the industrial history of the Forest of Dean. The complex geology of the region, formed over millions of years, produced the coal and iron deposits that miners have been extracting for at least two thousand years. The map represents the geology of the Forest of Dean. Each layer of rock shown on Geomap is made from the actual rock it represents, taken from local quarries. Overlain on the map is the industrial history, demonstrating the link between the underlying geology and the great quarrying and mining industries of the past.

Directions

Please note - postcode is approximate only. New Fancy View lies off the Speech House Road between Speech House and the Barracks. Spacious car parking.

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Great Western Railway Museum, Coleford

The Great Western Railway Museum, The Old Railway Station, Railway Drive, Coleford, Gloucestershire, GL16 8RH

Privately owned museum lovingly created from old goods shed marking the site of Coleford's two railways: the Great Western and Severn and Wye…

Privately owned museum lovingly created from old goods shed marking the site of Coleford's two railways: the Great Western and Severn and Wye Railways that once served the area. Standing engine and carriages with a children's steam railway around the town centre site.

Opening Times

• Friday 7 September: 1400-1700

Booking Details

No booking required

Access Information

Not suitable for wheelchairs.

Additional information

The Coleford Great Western Railway Museum is based in the former Goods Shed at Coleford, in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire. Built in 1883, this listed building is the last surviving part of Coleford Station, which once connected the town with Monmouth and Lydney. The collection covers the history of the railways in the Forest of Dean, dating from 1809 when the first Act of Parliament allowing a railway in Britain was passed, through the 19th century and the building of the Severn & Wye and Great Western branches.

Directions

Situated behind the Main Place and Co-Op next to lots of car parking (20p/hour).

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Hopewell Colliery- underground tour

Hopewell Colliery, Speech House Road, Cannop Hill, Coleford, Gloucestershire, GL16 7EL

Join Freeminer and recently elected Verderer, Rich Daniels, on a guided underground tour of Hopewell Colliery. The tour will take ap 45 minutes…

Join Freeminer and recently elected Verderer, Rich Daniels, on a guided underground tour of Hopewell Colliery. The tour will take ap 45 minutes and explain how the mines of the Forest of Dean were worked. You will will navigate a route through a section of miles of tunnels dug out since the 1820s. See how you work a 30-inch thick seam of coal! You will exit the mine workings by the beautifully engineered old furnace level erected in the 1820’s and the old "dram road" and find yourself in serene woodland. Then you will see why the Forest of Dean is known as the prettiest coalfield in the world!

Opening Times

• Thursday 6 September: 1000 & 1100
• Friday 7 September: 1000 & 1100

Booking Details

No booking required

Access Information

Before starting your tour you will have to enter the lamp room to be kitted out with a miner's lamp and helmet. Please remember when going underground, Hopewell is a real mine so sturdy shoes and warm clothing should be worn. Helmets and lamps will be provided and must be worn at all times while in the mine. Note: the tour is not suitable for very young children. Children will need to be able to wear a helmet and walk independently. Unfortunately the tour is not suitable for those with limited mobility. Access is available to the cafe for wheelchairs but not for underground tours.

Additional information

Max 10 people per tour/session.

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St Mary’s Church, St Briavels

St Mary's Church, Church Street, St Briavels, Coleford, Gloucestershire, GL15 6RG

The first stone built church was built on this picturesque site in 1089. It was enlarged to the current cruciform shape in the twelfth century.…

The first stone built church was built on this picturesque site in 1089. It was enlarged to the current cruciform shape in the twelfth century. The central tower was removed in the Victorian era and replaced by the South West tower. Interesting features include the Norman skirted font and the tomb of Robert, Abbot of Lire who died in 1272. Strangely a woman's head was later added. The Tudor Warren family tomb is also worth a look.
St Briavels is the resting place of Vice Admiral Alfred Carpenter who earned a VC for his bravery in landing 200 marines at Zeebrugge during the First World War.

Opening Times

• Saturday 8 September: 1100-1600
• Sunday 9 September: 1100-1600

Booking Details

No booking required

Directions

Opposite the castle!

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The Secret Forest

Stock Wood Scowles, The Rocks, Clearwell, Coleford, Gloucestershire, GL16 8JR

Explore the paths that wind through these mysterious woods. Wonder at the extraordinary scowles - the outcrops of crease limestone exploited for…

Explore the paths that wind through these mysterious woods. Wonder at the extraordinary scowles - the outcrops of crease limestone exploited for its iron ore - that formed approximately 180 million years ago. Free opening of the woods. Shimmering leaves, rare plants and Bonsai yew have grown over hundreds of years surrounded by rocks. Explore, too, the recreated iron age huts or round houses on site.
A free guided tour is offered of the replica Iron Age village starting at 2pm.

Opening Times

• Friday 7 September: 1000-1600; Tour 1400

Booking Details

No booking required

Access Information

While the paths are designed to be as accessible as possible the terrain may be difficult for some access. Lots of quiet spaces for feeding and picnics.

Directions

The Secret Forest is just outside Coleford. From Coleford centre traffic lights by the Kings Head Pub, follow the B4228 towards Chepstow. Continue on this road and straight over at the next traffic lights. Follow the signs for Clearwell or Clearwell Caves. The entrance to The Secret Forest is opposite the entrance to Clearwell Caves carpark.

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Tour of Tan House Farm and Grounds

Tan House Farm, Newland, Coleford, Gloucestershire, Gl16 8NQ

Join your host and co-owner of Tan House Farm, Christie Arno, for a guided tour of the glorious seventeenth century period house and extensive (14…

Join your host and co-owner of Tan House Farm, Christie Arno, for a guided tour of the glorious seventeenth century period house and extensive (14 acres) of grounds.

Opening Times

• Thursday 6 September: Tour 1430

Booking Details

No booking required

Access Information

Limited access. There is a step into the house and although there is a downstairs toilet facilities for wheel chair users are very limited. Wheelchair access to the garden is good although the gardens are sloped.

Additional information

Max 20 people per tour/session. Lots of parking available.

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Whitecliff Furnace: Talk

Whitecliff Furnace, Newland Street, Coleford, Gloucestershire, GL16 8NB.

Whitecliff Furnace is an eighteenth century blast furnace within an iron making complex. It was part owned by metallurgist David Mushet, who was…

Whitecliff Furnace is an eighteenth century blast furnace within an iron making complex. It was part owned by metallurgist David Mushet, who was lured to the Forest of Dean to redesign the furnace. It was one of the first coke fuelled furnaces in the Forest of Dean and its role was partly experimental. The site will be open throughout Heritage Open Days. Whitecliff Furnace forms an important part of the extraordinary story of the development of the metallurgy industry around the Forest of Dean and Wye Valley. Suitable for children to explore with adult supervision.

On Saturday 9th September at 2pm Ian Standing of the Forest of Dean Buildings Preservation Trust will give a talk about the history and future of the furnace.

The site is open to visitors at all times but will not be manned.

Opening Times

• Thursday 6 September:
• Friday 7 September:
• Saturday 8 September: Talk 1400
• Sunday 9 September:

Booking Details

No booking required

Access Information

Access and parking are limited. There are no facilities on site.

Additional information

The site is currently under renovation and needs to be accessed with care. It is owned by the Forest of Dean Building Preservation Trust.

Directions

From Coleford Town Centre take Newland Street. The Furnace is approximately half a mile down the street on your right.

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