SPUD

Jane Austen’s House is one of the most important sites in English Literature and our national heritage. From this home Jane Austen wrote and revised all six of her novels, creating characters and worlds that are today read across the world and remain deeply influential for writers, readers and creatives. The House has been open as a museum since 1949 and today houses an unparalleled collection of letters, first editions and objects in a beautiful and inspiring setting. Alongside permanent exhibitions the museum creates an annual program of temporary displays and regular festivals and workshops, as well as welcoming visits from schools and universities.

The South Downs National Park has it all – rolling hills, glorious heathland, river valleys, ancient woodland, thriving villages and towns. We are the youngest National Park in England, and the most densely populated, spanning from Winchester in the west to Eastbourne in the east. This iconic landscape is managed in partnership for nature, beauty and heritage, for the benefit of people – communities and visitors alike. It has been a refuge and sanctuary, a working landscape and a recreational one, an inspiration for artists over centuries. We both seek to preserve the unique archaeological and historical legacies of past communities and support the creation of new responses to the landscape by contemporary artists, writer and makers.

New Forest Heritage Centre, located in Lyndhurst, is a cultural hub offering a museum, gallery, reference library, and café. Operated by the New Forest Heritage Trust (Charity No. 1186656), the Centre shares the stories of the New Forest’s people, landscape, and traditions. It hosts exhibitions, learning programmes, and community events year-round. Free admission and a central location make it a key resource for heritage engagement and visitor orientation in the National Park.