Abbot’s Hospital Receives £92k Heritage Lottery Grant To Mark Its 400th Anniversary

Published on: 22 Dec, 2018
Updated on: 22 Dec, 2018

Guildford’s iconic Abbot’s Hospital has received £92,000 from the Heritage Lottery Fund to help it celebrate its 400th anniversary in 2019.

The building continues to provides for what it was originally built for: accommodation for older people to live an independent, fulfilled life in the centre of Guildford.

The Hospital of the Blessed Trinity, otherwise known as Abbot’s Hospital.

The project for Hospital of the Blessed Trinity (to give it its official name) for which it has received the funding is titled 400 years of Abbot’s Hospital: A Year of Celebration.

The master of Abbot’s Hospital, Michael McKechnie, and its trustees’ plans for the project will: “Enable people to get a better understanding of the history of a site that continues its original 400-year-old mandate to provide support and care for elderly people of Guildford”.

There will be market stalls on the High Street to take Abbot’s Hospital’s heritage outside its walls and engage with new audiences.

Trails of discovery leaflets are aimed to provide a more interactive learning experience for children and schools, plus events for its residents and their families to help people better understand the place they live.

People will be invited to create a mosaic along Abbot’s Hospital’s boundary wall in Jeffries Passage. aimed to give the project a permanent legacy. 

Abbot’s Hospital was founded by Archbishop George Abbot in 1619 who resolved to devote some of his wealth to the benefit of elderly residents of Guildford. It is a Jacobean Grade I listed building and contains significant collections such as the hospital’s charter, granted by James I in 1622, with the king’s picture appearing at the top.

The courtyard at Abbot’s Hospital.

The Master of Abbot’s Hospital was required to keep a ledger recording life at the hospital. Therefore, it has a vast collection of records, recording everyday life for residents going back 400 years to the hospital’s beginnings.

Abbot’s Hospital will work with Guildford Museum, the Surrey History Centre, the West Surrey Arts Society and local schools to research further existing records and make information more accessible. 

The master at Abbot’s Hospital, Michael McKechnie, said: “We are thrilled to have received this support thanks to National Lottery players and are confident the project will celebrate this significant 2019 anniversary of Abbot’s and increase public engagement and awareness of this very historic site through 2019 and beyond.”

A photograph from 1919 when Abbot’s Hospital celebrated its 300th anniversary. Picture: David Rose Collection.

Abbot’s Hospital offers accommodation for up to 27 residents. It also provides “a sociable and supportive environment, emphasising this sense of community through a range of regular social activities, including coffee mornings, keep fit classes and occasional outings. Many of our residents assist with guided tours, bake cakes for different activities, help in the garden and host social events”.

Share This Post