PLEAE NOTE THAT THE HALL WILL BE CLOSED ON SUNDAY 18TH APRIL AND MONDAY 31ST MAY, WE APOLOGISE FOR ANY INCONVENIENCE CAUSED

Arley Hall is one of the most interesting and attractive stately homes in the North West. The elaborate ceilings & oak panelling, impressive fireplaces, intricate stained glass and beautiful contents are not the only features which make Arley Hall so special. Visitors are enthralled by entering a piece of living history, which gives an intimate insight into life in the Hall and the history of a family that has cherished Arley as their home for over 550 years.

The present Hall stands on the same site as the first house built by the family in 1469, and is situated at the very heart of the Estate overlooking the famous Gardens and beautifully landscaped Park.

Lord Ashbrook, the great great grandson of Rowland Egerton-Warburton, who built the present Arley Hall, grew up in the Hall as a child and spent some time as a young man living there.

Amongst the finest in Britain and Europe the gardens have been created over the last 250 years by successive generations of the same family and thus offer an unusual blend of long history and traditional design with inspired modern ideas and additions. The result is a garden rich in atmosphere, interest and vitality – a wonderful example of the idea that the best gardens are living, changing works of art.

Within its eight acres of formal gardens, SW of the house, are many different areas, each with its own distincitve character, and on the NE side of the house, beyond the Chapel is the Grove, a well established arboretum and woodland garden of about 6 or 7 acres. Thus you will see at Arley a huge range of different plants of all kinds, making it a treasure trove both for the keen plantsman and for the less specialised visitor.

These magnificent gardens are maintained by a fantastic team of gardeners led by Head Gardener Gordon Baillee. We are extremely lucky to have a number of excellent volunteer gardeners; however the award winning team consists of: Dave Groom, Doug Rustage, James Youd and Mark Ormerod-Jordan.

We were particularly proud that Arley was selected as one of the Gardens of Distinction for Cheshire's Year of the Gardens scheme in 2008. This was an exciting new initative intended to celebrate the heritage of gardens and the green environment in the county of Cheshire.

Click here for a Tour of the Gardens at Arley by Jane Foster, sister of Lord Ashbrook. Jane grew up in Arley Hall, and after sometime in London, she returned with her husband Charles to live on the Estate in 1992.

Click here for details to find out how to spend a day with our Head Gardener, Gordon Baillie, working in the Arley Gardens.

Visitors are invited to enjoy a drink or a fine meal in the historic C16th century Tudor Barn or outside on the Tea Lawn with impressive views over to Arley Hall. The Tudor Barn has its own special atmosphere and ambience, and is a popular destination for visitors looking to enjoy excellent cuisine in a tranquil and beautiful setting. The restaurant offers light snacks such as homemade cakes and pastries, soup and sandwiches as well as main dishes including Honey Roast Cheshire Ham salad, Poached Salmon Fillet and Classic Caesar Salad. All food is home-baked or freshly made to order, and wherever possible ingredients on the menu are sourced from local suppliers. There is also a menu especially for children offering several healthy favourites.

The Arley gift shop offers a fine range of gifts from china and glassware to garden books and ornaments. Choose from many gifts exclusive to Arley including watercolour prints and books by Elizabeth, the late Lady Ashbrook.

For those visitors spellbound by the Gardens, Arley Hall Nursery gives you the opportunity to take some of the magic of Arley home with you. Viscount Ashbrook’s sister, Jane Foster, owns and manages the Nursery which works very closely with the Gardens, propagating many of its plants from those growing in the Gardens. The Nursery’s particular speciality is in herbaceous perennials and pelargoniums and a very wide selection of both is available here, almost all grown entirely on site.

The aim is to be able to supply any plant which a visitor has seen and particularly admired in the garden. Due to limited space it is not possible to grow large numbers of shrubs, so the Nursery concentrates on those which are more unusual and difficult to obtain or those that are particularly striking in the gardens. A border at the back of the enclosed Nursery, which is situated next to the main Car Park, displays many of the plants on sale.

The plants are displayed on raised beds with very clear bed labels which are convenient and easy to read. Jane Foster writes all the labels herself which she aims to make as helpful and informative as possible for the customers. There is a small staff, all knowledgeable and keen gardeners, who are able to answer visitors’ queries.

The Friends of Arley is an organisation which helps the Arley Estate in a number of different ways. All money raised by The Friends is donated to the Estate to spend in ways to help preserve and enhance the heritage assets of the Hall and Gardens. In return members enjoy a number of privileges.

In the winter months events are held in the atmospheric surroundings of Arley Hall. These events, for which a small charge is made, usually consist of an illustrated talk followed by a party at which wine and canapes are served, click here for the latest list of events. In the summer a number of excursions are arranged to houses, gardens or other places of interest. These often include a privately guided tour by the Head Gardener or other experienced and knowledgable person.

Throughout the summer and autumn Friends enjoy exclusive free access to the Gardens one evening a month, followed by the opportunity to enjoy a special meal in the Restaurant. Other privileges include free access to the Garden Festival. There is a reduction in the cost of Season Tickets and a 10% discount for Friends in the Gift Shop and in the Plant Nursery.

Friends assist the Arley Staff in a number of specific ways during the year. These include:

• Acting as guides for the very popular Bluebell Walks through the woods in spring
  
• Decorating the Hall with Flower Arrangements for the Garden Festival
  
• Running the Plant Creche and Visitor Information Centre at the Garden Festival
• Cleaning the books in the Library

In addition there is an extremely active group of Garden Volunteers who from 2009 will be responsible for growing all the vegetables and soft fruit in the Kitchen Garden.

Funds generated by the Friends have been used by the Arley Estate for a number of special projects such as: the restoration of the ‘Hot Walls’ in the Kitchen Garden, renewing curtains and carpets in the Hall, and the cleaning and restoration of paintings. Under a specially organised project about 50 beautiful new kneelers were embroidered for the private Chapel. In 2006 a bronze fountain, commissioned from Tom Leaper, was donated by the Friends in memory of Elizabeth, Lady Ashbrook (1911 – 2002) and was installed in the pond in the middle of the Walled Garden.

To join please download the application form and post to the Secretary of Friends of Arley at the address on the form or email to arleyfriends@googlemail.com.

Download Friends Application Form here

Click here for latest events