Help Restore Ashton Court Mansion. For Good.

Overview

Six centuries is a long time for any building. Ashton Court Mansion has made it this far, but its next chapter is far from certain.

Grade I Ashton Court Mansion is on Historic England's Heritage at Risk Register. Around three quarters of the Grade I listed Mansion is derelict. Behind the grand exterior are rooms that have been empty and closed off for years. We have a plan to change that.

Ashton Court Mansion Trust need your help to raise £500,000 through a community share offer in order to bring the Mansion into community hands and put the foundations in place to deliver the long term restoration of Ashton Court Mansion and turn it into a place that everybody can use, enjoy and help shape. 

By supporting us by buying community shares, you'll become a member and part owner of the Trust, with a real say and influence over what happens, a vote on how the trust is run and what we do, and the ability to stand for election to the board. Our Community Benefit Society Model puts people that care about Ashton Court Mansion at the heart of what happens to it. 
 

Our Business Plan and our Share Offer Document can be downloaded at the bottom of this page.

Ashton Court Mansion Trust want to bring the Mansion into community ownership, look after what makes it special and find new uses for rooms that have been out of action for far too long. 

What might that look like? Exhibitions. Live music. Learning a skill. Making something. Cooking classes. An artist's studio. A film shoot. A school trip. Or just coming in for a nose around.

We want a Mansion where there's something happening throughout the year, and there are reasons for everybody to come through the doors.

A place for everyone.

The Mansion needs to earn its keep, too. Events, filming, workspace rental, wedding and other commercial activity will help pay for the building and support the things we want to do for our community.

Our plan involves securing a lease from Bristol City Council and raising £500,000 through Community Shares to help the Trust take on the Mansion and put the people, plans and practical arrangements in place to run it well and build the organisation which will deliver the long term regeneration of the building.

The minimum investment is £100, but you can contribute more if you'd like to. Every pound helps us get closer to our target, and whatever you contribute, you'll become a member of the Trust with an equal vote in its future.

The Mansion has plenty of history. Now let's make some more.

About us

Who's behind all this?

Ashton Court Mansion Trust was founded by the late Norman Routledge, who dedicated much of his life to giving historic buildings new purpose. His work included Kings Weston House, The Mount Without and The Lamplighters.

Today, the Trust is a Charitable Community Benefit Society, which means we exist for community benefit rather than private profit, and our members will have a say in how we're run.

We're seeking a 125-year lease from Bristol City Council that would give us responsibility for managing, maintaining and regenerating the Mansion.

This isn't a quick tidy-up followed by a ribbon-cutting. Bringing the Mansion into use will take years, a great deal of work and many millions of pounds. A long lease gives us the security to plan properly, raise the money and open up more of the building as we go.

We're not trying to put the Mansion back exactly as it was in 1750 or 1850. We'll conserve the important bits, make careful changes where they're needed and give the rooms useful things to do now.

The team

The Trust is led by a volunteer Board of Trustees with experience across business, heritage, conservation, property, finance, marketing, community organisations and the creative industries. Our current trustees can be found here https://ashtoncourtmansion.org/our-story/whos-who. If we are successful in taking on the Mansion we will hire a number of key personnel to move the project forward, for more details see our business plan. 

We also have a growing network of volunteers, community organisations, schools, universities, businesses, artists, makers and heritage specialists who are helping us develop our plans.

Since taking on the Mansion on a temporary basis in 2026, we've been opening the doors more regularly, running tours and activities, developing partnerships and finding new ways to use the spaces we can safely access.

And people are already coming through the doors. We've seen visitors discover rooms they never knew existed, volunteers roll up their sleeves and all sorts of ideas begin to take shape. That's a good start.

Why it's important

A building this good deserves a job to do.  

Ashton Court Mansion is Grade I listed and on Historic England's Heritage at Risk Register. It has some wonderful rooms. It also has a great many rooms that nobody can currently use. The Mansion is owned by Bristol City Council and sits in one of the South West's biggest public parks - but it isn't a building that the public can truly benefit from.

Much of it is derelict, and some areas are too unsafe for public use. Without substantial investment, its condition will continue to deteriorate.

We need to conserve the historic building and deal with the areas that have deteriorated. But saving the Mansion also means giving people reasons to come inside.

Weddings. Dinners. Meetings. Celebrations. Filming. Exhibitions. Classes. Places to work and make things. Commercial activity will help support a programme built around five areas:

Food. Skills. Heritage. Culture & Arts. Nature.

There are some remarkable rooms waiting for a new job. The Long Gallery will become a flexible venue for events, performances and community gatherings. The former servants' quarters will provide affordable studios for artists and makers. De Lyons Hall will become a place to explore the history of Ashton Court, with spaces for learning alongside it.

We won't be able to do everything at once. Some parts of the Mansion will take years to regenerate, and the work will be carefully phased.

Some uses will bring in income. Others will be there because they're worth doing. Put them together, and the Mansion has a much better chance of paying its way while doing something good for Bristol.

Why now?

The next few months matter.

On 16 November 2026, Bristol City Council is due to vote on the principle of granting Ashton Court Mansion Trust a 125-year lease.

A yes would be a big step, but it wouldn't mean the lease was signed. There's still work to do before we can take on the building for the long term.

We also need the money to run the Mansion responsibly from day one, grow what happens here and go after the major grants needed for regeneration.

A lease without the money won't do it. Nor will the money without the lease. We need both.

That's why we're asking people to invest now.

What your money will do

First, we need to make the Mansion work.

The share offer isn't paying for the major building works. It's paying for what we need to make those works possible: a Trust that's ready to take on the Mansion and run it properly.

That means organising events, building partnerships, bringing people through the doors, developing activities and earning income. It also means doing the less glamorous but essential work: preparing funding bids, working with conservation specialists and planning the next stages of regeneration.

The money will help pay for community programming, fundraising, marketing and communications, the people and partnerships needed to deliver our plans, and some working capital for the Trust's trading subsidiary, which we anticipate will be spent on fitting out the kitchen.

Our initial five-year regeneration programme is expected to cost around £12 million. We expect to raise that funding separately, with around 85% currently anticipated from major institutional funders and donors, and the remainder from the wider public and smaller donors.

Major funders need to know there's a capable team, a long-term lease and a sensible plan for keeping the Mansion going. The share offer helps us put those things in place.

Your investment won't pay for the major regeneration works. It will help us get ready to deliver them.

The share offer

We're inviting people to invest in Ashton Court Mansion Trust through our Community Share Offer.

Fundraising target: £500,000

Minimum target: £480,000

Maximum raise: £550,000

Minimum investment: £100

Share value: £1 per share

Offer opens: 21 October 2026

Offer closes: 31 December 2026

We don't anticipate paying interest or allowing withdrawals until after the regeneration of the Mansion is complete - for at least 20 years. 

When you invest, you become a member and part-owner of Ashton Court Mansion Trust, with a vote in how the Society is run.

One member. One vote.

Every member has one vote, regardless of how much they invest. No single investor can hold more than 10% of the Society's total share capital.

Whether you put in £100 or £1,000, you get one vote. That's the point: the Mansion's future shouldn't be decided by whoever has the deepest pockets.

Please read the full Community Share Offer Document carefully before deciding whether to invest.

Only invest money you can afford to lose.

Documents

Have a good read.

Before investing, please read our Community Share Offer Document in full.

Our Business Plan and Society Rules provide further information about the Mansion's regeneration, our financial forecasts, the governance of the Trust and the rights and responsibilities of members.

We'd much rather you knew exactly what you're investing in before you decide.

One last thing

The Mansion has been here for more than 600 years. The cities and  has changed around it, and the building has changed too. There's no reason its story should stop here.

We want to see the doors open wider and more of the rooms put to use.

We want people learning, making, working, celebrating, exploring and finding their own reasons to come in. We want the history cared for, and plenty of new history made along the way.

It won't happen overnight. There's plenty to do, and we'd like you to help us do it.

The Mansion has plenty of history. Now let's make some more.

Own a share in its future. Invest from £100, or more if you can.

Your capital is at risk. Please read the full Community Share Offer Document before investing

For any questions or after support please contact communityshares@ashtoncourtmansion.org