Denny Abbey and The Farmland Museum

16/10/2026

Join us this December to enjoy breakfast with Santa Claus at Denny Abbey and the Farmland Museum!

For £15.50 per person (+ booking fee), each member of your family will be served a delicious cooked breakfast (sausage, bacon, egg, hash browns, beans, grilled tomato, toast, butter and jam), tea, coffee and fruit juice in our Docky Box Café. Vegetarian breakfast option available. Gluten free bread available for toast. Please let us know of any allergens when booking.

Then, your family will head over to our visitor centre to complete a festive themed craft while you wait for your chance to meet Santa. One of Santa's elves will collect small groups at a time and take you into a magical grotto in Walnut Tree Cottage where each family will meet Santa individually and children will receive a gift.

This event runs on Saturday 12th and Sunday 13th December 2026.

There will be two breakfast sittings on each day at 9:30am and 11am.

For those having breakfast at 9:30am, Santa will be ready to greet families from 10am. For those having breakfast at 11am, Santa will be ready to greet families from 11:30am. We will take two families at a time, and families are welcome to return to complete their craft, we just kindly ask that families make their way off site by the end of the time slot on their ticket.

Please note:
Should you need to cancel your booking, a full refund will be given up to two weeks before the event. Cancellations within two weeks of the event will not receive a refund. If the organiser cancels the event for any reason, we will attempt to reschedule the event or offer a full refund. We cannot reimburse travel, accommodation, or any other expenses incurred related to the cancelled event. As Denny Abbey and the Farmland Museum is closed to the public over the winter, tickets to this event do not provide entry to the rest of the site. Breakfast with Santa participants will be able to access the visitor centre, the Docky Box Café and Walnut Tree Cottage.

12/10/2026

It's and we're sharing one of our pieces of machinery with you.

This strange looking device is a sugar beet lifter. This tractor pulled machine has blades that push and lift the sugar beet out of the ground. The sugar beet would then be scooped up by the cage where they would roll around as it went along. This knocked off all the soil saving the farmer from doing this by hand.

If you want to learn more about our outdoor machinery next time you visit, just ask for one of our guides in the kiosk or use the QR code to access an online version.

11/10/2026

07/10/2026

September 2026 Allotment Diaries

What a difference some rain has made. It is almost like a second spring, as some of the plants seem to be in a race to set seed before the frosts arrive. The mint and chives have revived in the herb area in the cottage garden. John noticed a squirrel's nest in a tree in the neighbouring fields. We think the squirrel visits us to gather walnuts when no-one else is around. There seem to be more walnuts on our trees this year so it could be a good autumn for some. Meanwhile, David's thoughts have turned to next year and some overwintering onion sets for the allotment garden.

05/10/2026

This we are taking a look at our basket weavers display.

These two objects despite their drastically different appearances actually perform the same job. They are both osier bunchers.

They would be used to hold willow or reeds together, before the resulting bundle was tied up. The bundle would then be used by or sold to a weaver.

One of the things that could be made with the willow was a type of fence called a hurdle. We have an interactive display using ribbons instead of willow if you want to get hands on feel for the method yourself next time you visit. Just pop into this years temporary exhibit in pig shed 3.

04/10/2026

It's World Animal Day, and we're celebrating by sharing some of our historic photos of animals.

We have chosen some new photos, in addition to the pictures of the dog in Chittering and the Denny Abbey farm cat we shared earlier in the year.

These are of chickens at Lolworth poultry farm, horses at work in Littleport pulling a sail reaper that is now in our collection, and sheep at Denny Abbey Farm. The buildings behind the sheep are: (from left to right) the horse-keeper's house, the stables, a barn and the Abbey church at the time a farmhouse. Only the church now remains with other buildings demolished by the farmers or English Heritage.

What's your favourite animal related memory of Denny Abbey & the Farmland Museum?

02/10/2026

Happy World Smile Day. 😀 There's still time to let us put a smile on your face before we close for the season!

We close for the season on the 1st of November this year, but there is still lots to enjoy. We are open as usual Thursday-Sunday until the end of the season.

There is also:
-Blended Monkey Workshop 11th October
-Semperart Glass Fused Glass Workshop 17th October
-Denny Abbey Autumn Steam Up 25th October
-October Half Term Fun 29th and 30th October

The museum is open 10am to 4pm, with last entry at 3.30pm.
Farmland Museum Annual Pass Holders, English Heritage, National Art Pass and Museum Association Members enter free. Farmland Museum tickets are annual passes, so once you have purchased you can return on all days open to the public, including events (with some exceptions)!

01/10/2026

Today (01 October) is Gift Aid Awareness Day.

When you we can claim an extra 25p on every £1 donated! At Denny Abbey and the Farmland Museum this includes anyone buying an annual pass or any donations made via QR code at https://cafdonate.cafonline.org/12856 #!/DonationDetails

On thank you for ticking the box - and if you are a UK taxpayer why not tick the box next time you donate?

.org.uk

28/09/2026

Have you seen this years annual display in Pig Shed 3?

The theme for this years display, The Impact of a Changing Landscape, is the drainage of the fens and the impact this had on local people.

One of the objects you can see in there is this surveyors or Gunter's chain which would have been used for measuring out distances. It's from these we get the old measurements of Link and Chain.

If you haven't seen the exhibit yet you still have one more month for a chance to come and visit.