Rural Life Living Museum Ticket Portal

Join us for a day learning hedge laying.

Wednesday 22nd October 2025, Wednesday 12th November 2025, Wednesday 11th February 2026.

Start time 09.30 - Finish time 16.00

Maximum of eight participants.

We're very pleased to announce the start of Adult Courses at the Rural Life Living Museum. Thank you for your interest in the One Day Hedge Laying Course with John Blithe.

Aims - by the end of the course, participants will:

• Gain hands-on experience in hedge laying.
• Learn how to use a variety of hand tools associated with hedge laying.
• Understand the significance, history, and value of hedges. 

Participants should bring/wear:

• Sturdy footwear, work clothes, and gardening gloves.
• Dress appropriately for the weather.
• Tools such as billhooks will be provided, but participants are welcome to bring loppers or bow saws if you prefer.
• Snacks and water. 

Timing:

Please arrive by 9:20 am for a 9:30 am start. Please gather at the museum's café. There will be plenty of breaks throughout the day and the course will conclude at 4pm. 

Location: Rural Life Living Museum, The Reeds Road, Tilford, Farnham, Surrey, GU10 2DL. 

Sorry, no dogs allowed, with the exception of assistance dogs.

If you have any questions or require further information, please email: schools@rural-life.org.uk and mark your email 'FAO Learning Team, Hedge Laying'

Judy, the course leader, has been a volunteer at the museum for many years and nearly fifty years ago the museum founder, Henry Jackson was concerned that the older craft demonstrators at the museum were dying out. He suggested she learnt a craft so that such demonstrations could continue into the future. With a natural interest in countryside traditions, she decided to learn how to make Corn Dollies. That’s how her crafting story began.

So, join us for a day of Corn Dolly Making!  Saturday 8th November 2025.

• Find out exactly what a Corn Dolly is.
• Discover some of the myths, legends and stories associated with this traditional craft.
• Learn how to plait the straw to form various Corn Dollies.

After an introductory talk you will learn how to make a simple Country Man’s Favour and then how to plait the more complicated Ceres Wand.

Maximum of 8 participants per session.

Timing:
Please meet at the museum cafe at 10:20am for a 10:30am start. Course end times will vary, but we will aim to finish as close to 3:00pm as possible.

Location:

The Rural Life Living Museum, The Reeds Road, Tilford, Farnham, Surrey, GU10 2DL.

Cancellation Policy: Please note: To re-book or cancel will require a minimum of 30 days’ notice prior to the booked date. Courses can only be re-booked if dates are available within that year. Non-refundable - Refunds are not available. Please refer to The Rural Life Museum’s terms and conditions for cancellations.

Join us on the 4th weekend of the month in April, May, June, August, October & November when the Museum team get the 'toys' out to play.

Working weekends bring our vast collection to life, giving visitors the opportunity to experience all sorts, from tractors and a flour mill, through to spinning and weaving, woodturning, vintage fire engines, buses, bicycles and more!

Content each month varies depending on the season and the availability of our skilled and knowledgeable crafts people and volunteers. They are lovely, family friendly weekends and also appeal to the steam and engines specialists and enthusiasts who love nothing more than a cuppa and a catch up to talk shop with our volunteers. 

Welcome, Come in and Explore!

Join us this October Half Term for the BIG LEAF OUT! Lots of activities across the week for families and visitors to enjoy. We've got crunch and creep games with leaves, leaf based arts and crafts, an Autumn Scavenger Hunt planned, some good old fashioned welly wanging and more.....

On Wednesday 29th October it's a Railway Wednesday and we'll be hosting our final Community Day of 2025. Thanks to generous funding from Farnham Town Council, we've partnered with Hale Community Centre and Waverlery Hoppa Bus Service to provide a free fun day out for disadvantaged families in the Farnham area. Plus, on Wednesday 29th October we'll be welcoming storyteller Dawn Nelson who will be reading stories throughout the day!

On Thursday 30th October we'll have our family favourite, Activity Thursday! Come and join us for some fun and games!

All are welcome including dogs but we do ask they are kept on a lead within the museum. Come and enjoy our rural setting in the beautiful Surrey Hills and crunch through some autumn leaves. 

Join us every Thursday during the School Holidays for Activity Thursday – a lively day where history bursts into action!

Watch the Museum come alive as our talented team dives into crafting, making, and doing. Whether it’s creating rockets for kids, watching woodturners at work, sitting on tractors, or trying your hand at spinning and weaving – there’s something new to discover each week!

Every Activity Thursday is different, with seasonal themes and special appearances from our brilliant craftspeople and passionate volunteers. From tractors to bicycles, steam engines to fire trucks, it’s a celebration of all things mechanical, magical, and memorable.

Perfect for families, curious minds, and enthusiasts alike – and of course, there’s always time for a chat and a cake at the Market Garden Cafe

Welcome, Come in, Explore!

Dear Teachers,

We'd like to invite you to a Learning Open Evening at the Museum on Wednesday 22 October from 4:30pm - 6:30pm. The evening acts as an opportunity for you to find out about the Learning Programme at the Rural Life Living Museum. You'll be able to meet our fantastic Learning Team face-to-face, find out about what workshops and loan boxes we can offer you, and have an exclusive guided visit, as we'll be closed to the public from 4pm.

Refreshments will be provided and it is free to attend, but please RSVP via email to schools@rural-life.org.uk by Monday 20 October at 4pm.

Whether you've visited the Museum on a school trip before, or you're yet to hear all about us, this evening is a great chance to see what learning is all about at The Rural Life Living Museum in Tilford.

We look forward to welcoming you!

Remembrance at RLLM runs from Wednesday 12th November to Sunday 23rd November 2025. It's a time to reflect and enjoy the museum in this quieter winter month ahead of our wonderful Christmas activities and Santa Specials. 

This year we are hosting a small photographic exhibition in the Village Hall showcasing photographs of our village at war event working in partnership with Aldershot Farnham and Fleet Camera Club - affcc.uk - who are photographing a year at the museum. 

We also have a WW1 educational trail 'Lest we forget' remembering local people and the work they did in Farnham and the surrounding towns and villages. The trail will be around the museum site and will start from the shop and museum reception. Maurice Hewins who wrote the book Farnham in the Great War has created the trail. His book is a comprehensive narrative of the period 1914 to 1919. It leaves us in no doubt about the debilitating circumstances that challenged life in and around Farnham for the period and beyond.

Finally we invite visitors to the museum to plant a bulb in remembrance of someone they love. There will be areas marked out on the museum lawns and we would like spring bulbs planted so that they are there for all to enjoy next spring. Visitors can bring their own bulbs or purchase them from our neighbours Squires on the day. We hope to have a small stock of donated bulbs for children to use. 

To visit or take part in these Remembrance events simply purchase a general admission ticket online for the day you would like to visit. 

Christmas is Arriving at the Museum! 

Get ready for a magical festive adventure at the Museum as it’s transformed into Santa's Grotto once again for our Santa Specials! Hop aboard our steam-hauled Christmas train and journey through the trees to meet Father Christmas in his woodland grotto. 

Tickets on sale from Saturday 11th October. Book fast as these tickets sell out quickly!

Any questions?

Drop us a message at: info@rural-life.org.uk