Outings 2026

All coach outings leave from Aldridge Community Centre, WS9 8AN at the times stated below. Chillington is a car outing.
Due to high demand, all outings are now fully booked.

Our first outing of 2026 took place on Thursday 23rd April. We visited The Charterhouse, Coventry, which is a medieval monastic house, renowned for its medieval and Tudor wall paintings. It has pleasant grounds for a stroll and a very nice cafe. We were lucky with the weather and everyone found the house interesting. Afterwards we had free time in  Coventry, so some of us enjoyed another walk round the beautiful cathedral. Others visited the Herbert Art Gallery and Museum or the Transport Museum. A lovely day all round.
Thank you Sue and Denise for getting the season off to a good start.

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There was rain as we set off to Quarry Bank, but we were certain that the weather would improve. The Germans say that heaven laughs when angels travel and, of course, the WNTA is a group of angels! We were greeted on the car park and issued with tickets for a guided tour of the apprentice house. The whole site was staffed by first class volunteers, in the working mill where we saw expert demonstrations, in the apprentice house where the guide was both knowledgeable and engaging and in the house of the mill owner immediately adjacent to the mill. The grounds were spectacular with the mill race, stream and beautiful rhododendrons. AND it didn’t rain all day!
Vivian Fairbank
Many thanks, Vivian, for a lovely day

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Stowe House is a magnificent country house in Buckinghamshire steeped in history, designed by Robert Adam’s and Vanburgh, set in 830 acres of  superb gardens using the plans  of Capability Brown.  There are lakes, follies, temples and monuments to explore and delight in. The restaurant provides freshly prepared food and drinks. Also, the cafe kiosk is available for takeout snacks. The walk to the gardens is 800 metres with transport if needed. We have a private visit to the House first with drinks and biscuits followed by our guides to show us the spectacular interiors in this Palladian masterpiece. It is now a famous school and was saved from demolition in the 1920’s. There will be time later to view the lovely plants and gifts before returning home from what promises to be a memorable day. Margaret Jones.

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TOUR OF THE HALL & GARDENS WITH TRAILER RIDE TO LAKE FOLLOWED BY A PLOUGHMAN’S LUNCH.
Chillington is about half an hours drive from Walsall. We have a tour booked from 10.30. We start with tea / coffee and biscuits before we have a guided tour of the hall, which takes 45 – 60 minutes. Then a trailer ride before we go back to the hall for lunch.
When booking, please inform us of any dietary requirements.

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Last year’s outings and reports are on the Archive page

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