The Meeting House & GardenIn the heart of Great Bardfield, the Quaker Meeting House stands as a rare surviving timber-framed Georgian building, built in 1806 in the garden of a medieval dwelling known as Buck's House. For more than two centuries it has remained true to its founding purpose and is still hosting Quaker worship every Sunday and providing a space rooted in simplicity, reflection, and community.
Over the years, its doors have welcomed many significant local figures, most notably Edward Bawden (1903-1989), celebrated member of the Great Bardfield Artists. Bawden's whimsical watercolours, linocuts, posters, and murals brought national attention to the village, and his regular presence at the Meeting House enriched both the Quaker community and the area's artistic heritage.
Alongside its historic interior - with original pine benches, a dais for elders, and a sliding timber partition - the Meeting House is accompanied by a large walled garden, a peaceful space containing graves dating from 1806 onwards.
Although lovingly cared for by the current Quakers, the garden now needs revitalising and funding to restore its beauty, enhance its planting, and ensure it can be enjoyed for generations to come.
We are excited to share our plans to breathe new life into the garden of this much-loved historic space. We want to create a "community" garden for everyone to enjoy!
Our vision for the garden includes:
The development of a garden is never truly finished as it changes each year, so we are not setting a particular completion date. But we hope to open it to everyone next year so visitors can see it developing through the seasons.
If you would like to support the project, we have a 
page. All donations will go to the Great Bardfield Meeting House Garden Project.
Alternatively, if you were able to help in any of the following ways, please get in touch:
local_floristAny plants or cuttings you might be able to offer
oil_barrelAny unused (watertight) bins or water butts - saving rainwater is ever more important for gardens these days
hovWhilst the garden work is being carried out by people who attend or are members of the Bardfield Quaker group, it is not an official Quaker (Religious Society of Friends) project.
hovThe auction of the painting by Paul Evans to raise funds for the garden resulted in a syndicate of Quaker Friends buying the painting together.
If you have any questions which are not answered above, please get in touch.
If you'd simply like to learn more about Quakers and our meeting in Bardield, please see the Bardfield Quakers website.