Supporting the National Trust

The Purbeck Association was founded in 1987 and is a voluntary association of National Trust Members and accredited Volunteers.

Membership costs £5 for year for individuals, or £7.50 for a family at one address.

Follow this link to find out more about what we do with the money we raise

What we are

Centres and Associations exist to promote the work of the National Trust and make membership more enjoyable by allowing members and volunteers to share their interest with like-minded people in their area.

The Purbeck Association is one of around 200 such groups in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and 20 here in Wessex. Groups are run by members, for members.

In 2008-09 centres and associations donated some £900,000 to the Trust, and since the first association was founded in Manchester in 1948, nearly £21 million has been raised.

Who we are

Anyone who wants to support the work of the Trust in this area is welcome to join. Our 400+ members live mainly in and around Swanage and Wareham; click here for more details. Our objectives are to promote the work of the National Trust in Purbeck and, through social activities, make membership more enjoyable.

We are independent of the National Trust but governed by a constitution common to all its Centres and Associations. Our affairs are conducted by a committee elected at our annual general meeting held each April. If you're deeply interested you can click here to see our constitution - it's important, but it's not exactly a thrilling read.

If you want to know who the committee members are, click the button

What we do

Talks

There are talks by visiting speakers monthly from September to April. The venue generally alternates between Wareham and Swanage - click here or follow the link above for details of talks. Since 2008 we've also had an evening and a Saturday morning talk/demonstration session at Studland Study Centre each summer.

Outings

We arrange coach outings to places of interest, generally monthly from April to October. Recently, in alternate years we've also arranged a special Christmas outing in December combining a carol service in Sherborne Abbey with the opportunity for Christmas shopping - click here or follow the link above for details of outings.

Social Events

There's always a Christmas lunch in December. A couple of times a year there is an afternoon tea so that new members can meet the Committee. We know that many members can't attend the afternoon talks or midweek outings, so recently we've had some more evening events such as Cheese & Wine evenings, barbeques  and 'themed' meals- click here or follow the link above for details

Special Events

In June 2005 we held a special event as part of SeaBritain 2005. Click to find out more.