The Benton End House and Gardens in Hadleigh, Suffolk, are set to reopen to the public after receiving major funding for restoration. Once home to two leading artists, the Tudor property will soon return as a center for art and learning.

The Garden Museum in London has received over £294,000 in funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund. This support will launch the first phase of the project, which includes roof and building surveys. The goal is to restore the site and prepare it for visitors once again.

Benton End was once the home of artist and gardener Sir Cedric Morris (1889–1982) and his partner Arthur Lett-Haines (1894–1978). Together, they founded the East Anglian School of Painting and Drawing, one of the most progressive art schools of its time.

Restoring an Artistic Legacy

The school first opened in Dedham, Essex, in 1937. After a fire destroyed the original building, Morris and Lett-Haines moved to Benton End in 1939. The house soon became a gathering place for young artists. Notable pupils included Lucian Freud, Maggi Hambling, and Joan Warburton.

In 2021, Bridget and Rob Pinchbeck of the Pinchbeck Charitable Trust gifted the property to the Garden Museum. The couple wanted the house and gardens to be used again for art, learning, and horticulture. Before that, Benton End had been privately owned by four families over nearly 40 years.

The new funding ensures that the property remains public. Without it, the Garden Museum said, Benton End might have gone back on the market and fallen into private hands.

Charles Spicer, chair of the Benton End Board and trustee of the Garden Museum, said he was delighted by the support. He added that the grant will help reopen Benton End as early as next year.

The project aims to protect both the building and its creative history. The restoration work will make the site a place for study, gardening, and community events.

A New Chapter for Benton End

For the Garden Museum, this project represents more than preservation. It reconnects Benton End with its artistic past while preparing it for a new generation of visitors. The revived site will honor Morris and Lett-Haines’s legacy and their impact on British art and horticulture.

When it reopens, Benton End House will once again stand as a space where art, education, and nature come together — a living tribute to its founders’ vision.