The local community would like to see this significant historical building conserved and developed as a focal point for the Darent Valley community. To that end, a Charitable Incorporated Organisation – The Archbishop’s Palace Conservation Trust (APCT) – has been established (Registration number 1173486). On 19th September 2019, Sevenoaks District Council granted a 99-year lease on the site and buildings to the Trust, which is working to conserve the Palace, create an interpretation centre for Otford and the Darent Valley and operate it as a self-sustaining community resource. The Trust, which was registered on 20th June 2017, is run by a board of local trustees. The beneficiaries of this trust are the Otford community.
You can download a copy of the APCT Constitution by clicking here
Please sign up to receive updates on our plans and progress using the form on the right.
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Trust Objectives
(a) To work for the benefit of the public the preservation, restoration, maintenance, repair and improvement of the building known as the Archbishop’s Palace in Otford, Kent.
(b) to advance the education of the public in the history of the Archbishop’s Palace, the Tudors, the role of the Archbishops and the history of the Darent Valley by the provision of exhibitions and other learning experiences.
A comprehensive description of our current plans for the Palace is given in the Trust’s Business plan available here.
The Trust has prepared a comprehensive Audience Development Plan which can be downloaded here.
The current Trustees are:
- Andrew Goymer (Chairman)
- Elizabeth Anderson
- John Edwards-Winser
- Roger House
- Nick Rushby (Secretary)
- Charles Shee
- Beth Walker
- Neil Williams
You can contact the trustees by email at secretary@otfordpalace.org
Working with the Trust
Volunteering with the Archbishop’s Palace Conservation Trust, – or becoming a trustee – gives you the opportunity to develop your knowledge and learn new skills in a wide range of areas:
- Running a business
- Caring for historic buildings
- History and archaeology
- Museum collections management
- Environmental issues
- Educational outreach
- Project management
- Fund-raising
- Social media and website development
Click here to find out more about volunteering or becoming a trustee
Making a donation
There are two ways in which you can help us by making a donation. You can either contact the secretary (secretary@otfordpalace.org) or if you prefer,
Go to our donation site here. We will be most grateful for your help.
Our sponsors
The Trust would like to thank our sponsors and benefactors:
Ellie and Tom Allen, Eleanor Allen, William Bel, Michelle Boakes, Caroline Bowdler, Georgia Bruce, Barbara Collins, David Dinkin, Simon Featherstone, Mary Gee, Jacqui Gilligan, Eileen Goodwin, Andrew Goymer, John Harrison, Roy Harvey, Thomas Hudson, Steve Humphrey, David Jones, John Kerr, Dennis Keys, Anne Knight, Charmian Marsh, Ann McCarthy, Karen Millward, Margaret Nicholson, Peter Phillips, Patrick Phillips, Joseph Raymond, Nick Rushby, Simon Sim, Andrew Sindall, Shirley Strutt, Heather Thomson, Shirley Warren, Eileen Williams, Mrs J Wooding, Doreen Wright, Conation Technologies Limited, Gulliver Wood Treatments Limited, The Trustees of the Charing Palace Trust, The Trustees of the Otford Players, The Trustees of the Otford Society.
The Archbishop’s Palace Conservation Trust is supported by a number of grant-giving trusts and foundations including:
- The Darent Valley Landscape Partnership Scheme which derives its funds form the National Lottery and the EU Interreg programme
- The Enovert Community Trust
- The Pilgrim Trust
- The Garfield Weston Foundation
- The Headley Trust
- The Historic Houses Foundation
Support during Covid was provided by the UK Government DCMS Culture Recovery Fund and the Postcode Lottery.
The hedgerow planting on Palace Field was funded by MSK Waste Management and Recycling Ltd.
We also thank the people of Otford and the surrounding villages for their support at fund-raising events.
The Darent Valley Landscape Partnership Scheme
The Archbishop’s Palace Conservation Trust is the delivery partners for the DVLPS project 2D: Otford’s Hidden Palace. You can find out more about the DVLPS through their website here.
Accessibility statement for Otford Palace website
We want everyone who visits the Archbishop’s Palace website to feel welcome and find the experience rewarding.
What are we doing?
To help us make the website a positive place for everyone, we’ve been using the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1. These guidelines explain how to make web content more accessible for people with disabilities, and user friendly for everyone.
The guidelines have three levels of accessibility (A, AA and AAA). We’ve chosen Level AA as the target for the Otford Palace website.
How are we doing?
We’ve worked hard on our website and believe we’ve achieved our goal of Level AA accessibility with the exception of descriptions for the videos we have included. We will be adding those description over the coming months. We monitor the website regularly to maintain this, but if you do find any problems, please get in touch.
Let us know what you think
If you enjoyed using the Otford Palace website, or if you had trouble with any part of it, please get in touch. We’d like to hear from you, so please email us at secretary@otfordpalace.org