The Grade I listed Great Barn at Gawthorpe Hall in Padiham has reopened to the public for the first time since 2008, following a £1.35m project to reroof and secure the building.
Built in 1605, the barn is more than 420 years old and is described by the National Trust as one of the finest aisled barns in the North West. The work repaired the roof and timber rafters using heritage craft skills, protecting the structure, and the breeding colony of bats that lives in it, for future generations.
The project was funded by a legacy alongside grants from Historic England (£337,975), the Wolfson Foundation (£200,000), the Lancashire Environmental Fund, local donors, and Burnley Council through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. Gawthorpe Hall itself is a National Trust property run as a museum by Lancashire County Council.
A pop-up café, Mooch Gawthorpe, run by the team behind Padiham’s Mooch 87, has opened in the courtyard tea room ahead of a full opening planned for early 2027.
This is exactly the kind of local heritage that makes Padiham and Burnley West worth fighting for. A treasured local landmark has been saved and put back to use for residents and visitors, and we want to see it thrive.