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Our Partners
Learn more about the Hardy Country initiative partners.
This page is brought to you by several independent ‘not for profit’ organisations who are working together to promote the life and work of Thomas Hardy and the county of Dorset.
The Thomas Hardy Society is an educational Charity founded in 1968 with the intention of promoting public knowledge and understanding of the life and works of the Dorset poet and novelist. It is a Society as much for the lay-enthusiast as the scholar, student or general reader. The Society is run by a Council of Management, which meets regularly in Dorchester, and has an office in the Dorset County Museum, staffed by volunteers.
Dorchester Town Council
Dorchester Town Council consists of 20 councillors, with representatives elected in five wards, North (4 councillors), South (3), East (5), West (4) and Poundbury (4). They are elected for a term of 5 years, with the last election in May 2024. The Council employs staff to implement councillors' decisions and to look after the day-to-day management of the facilities that we provide.
Dorchester Civic Society
We exist to stimulate people’s interest in the town by encouraging high standards of architecture, urban design and planning.
Dorset History Centre
.. a thousand years, a million stories
Dorset History Centre is the archives service and local studies library for Bournemouth, Christchurch, Dorset and Poole.
We house Dorset's local archives - from council records to personal collections.
Save The Area North of Dorchester
The proposed mass housing development north of Dorchester between Stinsford and Charminster is still part of Dorset Council’s proposed Local Plan. We’re a group of local people campaigning against the proposal to build over 4,000 houses on countryside to the north of Dorchester in Dorset.
Dorchester Joint Heritage Committee
Dorchester Joint Heritage Committee is a joint committee made up of Councillors from the Town Council and Dorset Council. There are also a number of non councillor representatives from other organisations in the town including the Duchy of Cornwall, Dorchester Civic Society, Dorchester Chamber for Business, Local Nature Reserve, Dorset County Museum, The Keep Military Museum, Shire Hall Project, Blue Badge Guides and the Dorchester Association.
For over 30 years, Dorchester Arts has engaged tens of thousands of people in a wide variety of arts events – from huge outdoor events to small-scale children’s theatre. Dorchester Arts is supported by Dorset Council, Dorchester Town Council and our individual donors and corporate sponsors. We are a membership organisation, a registered charity and a company limited by guarantee.
The New Hardy Players bring the stories of Thomas Hardy to life through evocative dramatisations of his work. The New Hardy Players formed in 2005, at the request of Norrie Woodhall on her 100th birthday, to celebrate the work of Dorset’s world famous and much loved author and poet Thomas Hardy.
The Arts Society Dorset County
The Arts Society was founded in 1968 and was called the National Association of Decorative and Fine Arts Societies (NADFAS)) until May 2017 when it changed its name to reflect the broader range of the Arts subjects its members were interested in.
Discover Dorchester
Dinosaurs and Romans, literary giants, great scientists, military history, art and architecture, beautiful green spaces, interesting and independent shops and great places to eat – there really is something for everyone.
Dorchester Area Community Land Trust (DACLT)
We are a not-for-profit organisation. A new project is coming soon to Dorchester and will provide affordable housing for young people. We are working very hard to get this project off the ground. Please visit our Latest News page for updates on how the project is progressing.
Dorchester Association
Founded in 1982, the Dorchester Association for research into local history and archaeology is dedicated to the study and appreciation of local history and archaeology in Dorchester and its surroundings. The town has long fascinated historians with its well preserved Roman remains and there are many other buildings and monuments of interest to explore.
Dorset Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
The Dorset AONB Partnership was established in January 2003 to conserve and enhance the natural beauty and heritage of the Dorset AONB. The Dorset Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty is blessed with some of the most striking sequences of beautiful countryside unique in Britain. It is this collection of fine landscapes, each with its own characteristics and sense of place, that give the Dorset AONB its unique character.
Dorset Council
Dorset Countryside helps to secure the sustainable use and management of the area’s special countryside and provides facilities to promote its greater understanding, appreciation and enjoyment. The Council’s Access and Rangers team work in partnership with other organisations in the county to manage Dorset’s beautiful landscape. On top of this core role, the service supports the local community in practical projects, educational work, and raises awareness of environmental issues in the county.
Dorset CPRE
Dorset CPRE, the countryside charity, is the local branch of the CPRE – Campaign to Protect Rural England. We want a thriving, beautiful countryside for everyone to value and enjoy.
Dorset Museum
Dorset Museum is an independent museum owned and managed by the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society with financial support from Dorset County Council and West Dorset District Council. Open to anyone with an interest in Dorset’s past the Dorset Natural History and Archaeological Society is an educational charity with over 1800 members.
Kingston Maurward College
Kingston Maurward is a vibrant and growing college set in the heart of Dorset on the south coast. The college specialises in education and training for the land-based industries and has been graded by Ofsted as a Good College with Outstanding Features. It offers hundreds of courses taught within a stunning 750 acre estate with landscaped gardens, lake and Georgian Mansion house, together with brand new teaching facilities. The college is home to more than 4,000 students studying courses from entry level to full Honours degrees.
The National Trust is a charity and is completely independent of Governmental legislation.
It has 3.5 million members and 52,000 volunteers who devoted 2.3 million hours in 2007/08 to the maintenance and promotion of its properties. More than 12 million people visit the Trust’s pay-for-entry properties, with an estimated 50 million visiting open air properties. The Trust protects and opens to the public over 300 historic houses and gardens, and 49 industrial monuments and mills. It also looks after forests, woods, fens, beaches, farmland, downs, moorland, islands, archaeological remains, castles, nature reserves, and villages – for ever, for everyone.
Salisbury Civic Society
Salisbury Civic Society, as a member of Civic Voice, is a voluntary organisation supporting pride in our heritage, working to enhance our environment and shaping the future of Salisbury and South Wilts through active engagement with local plans and initiatives.
Shire Hall Museum brings over 200 years of justice and injustice to life. Walk in the footsteps of people whose lives were forever changed in the historic court at Dorchester’s Shire Hall. Immerse yourself in the cells before ascending to the dock. Experience it for yourself.
Society of Dorset Men
The Society of Dorset Men stands today in good heart and with much the same purpose as the founders laid down in 1904. With a membership of over 900, the Society encourages members to be enthusiastic about all things Dorset- not forgetting the Dorset dialect- and to foster a love of and pride in the county, its history, culture and traditions.
Today the rural parish of Stinsford occupies a large area of land to the North and East of Dorchester, with the River Frome creating the parish’s southern most boundary. It covers 1352 hectares and in 2004 the population was estimated at 380 people living in 147 dwellings. The parish consists of agricultural land, woodland, and a small portion of Puddletown Heath.
Enhancing civic life in our community, Weymouth Civic Society.
Founded in 1944, Weymouth Civic Society’s role is to enhance civic life for residents of Weymouth and Portland, as well as surrounding areas.
William Barnes (1801 – 1886) was born in Bagber, North Dorset. He was a poet who wrote mainly in the Dorset dialect but also in Standard English. He taught himself 60 languages, was a competent engraver, antiquary, linguist and musician, playing the flute, violin and piano. He was a schoolmaster but later registered as a ten year’s man with St John’s College, Cambridge, he was priested in 1848. Barnes died at Winterborne Came and is buried in the churchyard there. The Society promotes the enjoyment of the poems of William Barnes and knowledge of the man himself and his times. They aim to nurture the dialect and encourage reading. They hold events which include talks, members’ evenings when members read poems both in dialect and Standard English, musical entertainment drawing on Dorset’s rich folk and cultural traditions, and an annual service of remembrance. They produce a bi-annual newsletter which contains articles and information on publications and research related to William Barnes.
University of Exeter – College of Humanities
The College of Humanities at the University of Exeter carries out excellent research and teaching across a number of related disciplines. Areas of expertise include Archaeology, Classics and Ancient History, Drama, English Literature, Film Studies, History, Modern Languages, Theology and Religion, and Visual Culture.
Society calendar
Upcoming events
Dates for your Diary
From 14/09/2024 until 01/08/2026
Starts 09:00 until 18:00
Starts 09:00 until 18:00
Stourhead House and Gardens Trip
On 28/09/2024
Starts 12:00
Starts 12:00
10th DORCHESTER LITERARY FESTIVAL
From 12/10/2024 until 19/10/2024
Starts 12:00 until 19:30
Starts 12:00 until 19:30
MARK CHUTTER A LITERARY WALK – WESSEX WRITERS
On 13/10/2024
Starts 12:00 until 14:00
Starts 12:00 until 14:00
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