| | THE BLAKE COTTAGE TRUST News from Blake’s Cottage
Preserving the Home of Britain’s Most Visionary Poet, Printer and Painter APRIL / MAY 2026 |
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“He who would do good to another must do it in Minute Particulars.” William Blake |
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COMMUNITY CONSULTATION Help Shape the Future of Blake’s Cottage |
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Your voice matters. Following two public meetings and hundreds of conversations with local groups and individuals, we have launched the first phase of our online survey — and sought further funding for detailed consultative focus groups to follow A restored cottage and associated community and education centre can deliver lasting economic, environmental and cultural benefit — the kind of impact the Blakes would have championed. We want this project shaped by as many people as possible. Please complete our survey. |
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CONSERVATION UPDATE The Cottage Transformation |
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With the new roof and thatch in place and the cottage safe from imminent structural collapse, full-scale fundraising for restoration of the building and garden can begin in earnest. A specialist working group of more than twenty experts — conservators, heritage garden specialists, archaeologists and historic house managers — is advising the Board on how to give future visitors an authentic, immersive experience of the cottage as it was in Blake’s day. Conservation architect James Campen, conservation specialist Nick Tyson, and BCT Trustee Mark McCahill have completed their detailed analysis of the building’s condition and the works required. |
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We are proud to be supported by some of Britain’s most important heritage organisations: The National Lottery Heritage Fund · Architectural Heritage Fund · World Monuments Fund · Garfield Weston Foundation · Historic England |
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Local authority conservation teams provide equally vital technical and regulatory guidance — without their expertise, we simply could not have reached this point. |
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COUNTING DOWN TO 2027 Blake 200: The Bicentenary Approaches |
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William Blake died on 12 August 1827. The bicentenary is two years away — Libraries and Museums in London and all over the world will be displaying Blake's works and holding special events throughout that year. The Blake Cottage Trust is determined that Felpham and Sussex will be at the heart of these celebrations. |
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"And did those feet in ancient time / Walk upon England’s mountains green?" William Blake, inspired by his walks along the Felpham coast |
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Blake’s three years in Felpham (1800–1803) were the only time he ever left London — and among his most explosively creative. Here he wrote Auguries of Innocence, arguably the first great poem for environmental protection. He also began his epic works Milton and Jerusalem. He named Chichester — “lovely mild and gentle” — and there are echoes of his walks in the downs and by the coast in the famous lines set to music by fellow Sussex resident Sir Hubert Parry. His time here also brought high drama: accused of uttering seditious remarks after an altercation with a soldier, Blake was tried at Chichester Guildhall in 1804 — and fully acquitted. The episode lives on in transcripts, plays and scholarship to this day. |
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A new 20-strong working group — drawn from the arts, academia and community organisations — has been established to foster collaboration between the Trust and partners and funders to ensure thousands of people can experience the spiritual power of Blake’s prints, paintings and poems in the bicentenary year. |
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COMMUNITY & YOUNG PEOPLE Young People Inspired by Blake |
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Over 70 metres of vivid new art now transforms the Hotham Park Subway in Bognor Regis — and Blake’s imagery is at the heart of it. Young people from the 39 Youth Club worked with the Trust and community arts charity Artswork to explore Blake’s vision and give it a 21st-century twist. What was once an unloved underpass is now a celebration of Bognor’s young people and what they love about their town. The project united 39 Youth Club, Bognor Regis Town Council, West Sussex Youth Justice Service, Safer Arun Partnership, the Sussex Police & Crime Commissioner, and the Blake Cottage Trust. |
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"It’s absolutely fantastic. The young people guiding this had extraordinary ambition from the start — and they delivered." — Beccy East, Creative Placemaking Producer, Artswork "Project 39 has been amazing and surpassed our expectations. Through the use of art work, the children and youth of Bognor Regis have expressed their voice, their creativity and their inspirations." — Michael McLaughlin, Committee Clerk to Bognor Regis Town Council |
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Local teacher and Blake Cottage Trustee Suzy Lloyd is leading our growing programme to bring Blake’s many-layered works into local primary and secondary schools — planting seeds for the next generation of Blake enthusiasts. |
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KNOWLEDGE & RESEARCH A Library for Blake |
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Eminent Blake scholar Dr Keri Davies — who made the remarkable discovery of the connections between Blake’s mother and the Moravian Church — has generously donated his entire personal collection of over 600 books to the Trust. The collection will shortly be transported to Bognor and catalogued by Dr Irene Campbell, former Head Librarian for Sussex and BCT Trustee, who is leading our vision for a dedicated Blake library and research centre. |
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Felpham and Bognor host some wonderful Blake-related events this spring and summer. Please share details and support them.
2 May: 2.00pm - 4.00pm, Regis School of Music Recital Hall, Bognor Regis Acclaimed author Philip Hoare speaks on his new discoveries about Blake in his recent book: William Blake and the Sea Monsters of Love |
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16 May: 10.00am - 3.30pm, Felpham Village Hall Blake scholar Susanne Sklar returns to Felpham for her celebrated interactive reading of Blake's masterpiece Jerusalem in 'Breaking the Cycle of Violence — We Need Blake's Jerusalem'. |
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13 June: 7.00pm, St. Mary's Parish Church, Felpham A meeting of music, words and minds organised by the Swanbourne Poets and the Trust. A free event with voluntary donations.
16 July, St. Mary's Parish Church, Felpham Felpham lad, BCT Trust Ambassador and scholar Aidan Bappoo explores Blake and Christian mysticism. |
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VISITORS & AMBASSADORS Distinguished Visitors |
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Guided visits to the cottage remain in high demand and have to be carefully managed because of the state of the interior of the cottage and the surrounds. Recent guests have included: acclaimed writer and Blake scholar Iain Sinclair; new BCT Ambassador Dr Rebecca Marks, who has produced a compelling video of her visit (click here for video); musician Ian Anderson (of Jethro Tull), who expressed great enthusiasm for arranging performances; and Belgian artist Katia Thienpondt — a reminder that Blake’s reach is genuinely international. We also welcomed Catherine Kelly of the Blake Fellowship — with which we have a valued ongoing relationship — alongside artist and BCT Ambassador Jan Woolf, poet and academic Naomi Foyle, and long-time cottage supporter Rachel Searle. Every visit confirms why this project matters. |
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IN THE MEDIA Media & Publications |
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ROSA (Review of Sussex Arts), the region’s beautiful arts magazine, published a feature on the cottage following a visit from Editor Alex Leith and Rowena Easton. (Click here for article) |
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Trust Chair Doug Nicholls has continued a busy schedule of presentations, with recent talks to the Petworth History Society, Worthing Mothers’ Union, and the Blake Society amongst others. He and our Project Coordinator, Sarah Parker have also had very fruitful discussions with Chichester Cathedral about plans for the Blake bicentenary. |
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GOVERNANCE Governance & Trust Policies |
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Thanks to support from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, a full and independent governance review of the Trust has been completed and its recommendations acted upon by the Board. Two substantial new policies — covering safeguarding and volunteer management — have been adopted and will be published on the website shortly. |
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Sustainable Access & Transport |
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Early responses to our survey suggest there is understandable and proper concern about the Trust's policies on access and transport to the Cottage when it is open to the public. The Trust's Chair, Doug Nicholls has expressed our policy in public many times: “From when the new Board was formed in 2024, we have been determined to handle properly the footfall our successful project will bring. We would never want to clog the roads or pavements. Through a ticketed system and careful planning, we will be super-sensitive to all related issues — and we have been in extensive discussion with planners and relevant bodies since 2024.” |
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Sculpture Commission Opportunity Thanks to The National Lottery Heritage Fund the Trust has funds to commission a sculptor to produce a maquette or initial designs for a permanent sculpture for the cottage or garden. If you are interested — or know someone who might be — please get in touch via blakecottagetrust.org |
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The Blake Cottage Trust Registered with the Charity Commission of England and Wales Charity number: 1160716 |
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