Norfolk is blessed with a rich heritage of historic buildings including: churches and chapels, grand country houses, medieval guildhalls, schools and houses built in timber, flint, brick, and clay lump. The Norfolk Historic Building Group (NHBG) was founded in 2000 to bring together people who enjoy and appreciate old buildings and want to learn more about them.
The Norfolk Historic Buildings Group is one of the most active groups of its kind in the UK and has won several major awards for its research and publications (including 1st prize at the prestigious National Archaeology Awards in 2006). It has attracted repeat funding for its projects from the Heritage Lottery Fund and English Heritage.
NHBG contacts.
Chair: Ian Hinton ian.hinton222@btinternet.com
Membership: Maggy Chatterley maggy6@btinternet.com
Committee
Secretary: Lynne Hodge lynne@walknorfolk.co.uk
Website:
Surveys of houses. NHBG has been asked by many owners to survey their houses: if you would be interested in having someone from the Group visit and report on your house please contact Ian Hinton (ian.hinton222@btinternet.com). When owners are happy for this to happen, reports are put onto the website (see Archive). So far there are over 300 reports which form a unique archive. Members who are registered to do so may access the reports.
Talks and activities. NHBG organises a series of winter talks which are open to everyone and reported on the events page and summer visits and activities for those who are members of the Group. These talks and summer activities are written up in NHBG Newsletters, published twice a year. For more information see Publications
Research. NHBG has undertaken a number of research projects which form the basis of publications. These include:
The historic buildings of New Buckenham (published as Vol 2 in 2005);
The Tacolneston Project: a study of historic buildings in the Claylands of South Norfolk (published with Lottery funding as Volume 4 in 2009);
Historical and architectural study of rural schools and schooling in Norfolk 1800-1944. In partnership with Norfolk Record Office and University of East Anglia. The findings were published with support from English Heritage as Volume 5 in 2013.
The North Norfolk Pilgrimage Centre of Little Walsingham. The findings of this project were published as Volume 6 in 2015, with assistance from Norfolk and Norwich Archaeological Society.
The buildings of Hempnall: part of the Great Rebuilding? This was published as Volume 7 in 2020.
These research projects have all been undertaken with the assistance of volunteers from the Group who received training in the various methods of examining and recording historic buildings.
Researching historic buildings
For information about how to research historic buildings go to Sources Page.