Bridgnorth

Bantock House

Bradmore · 12 miles

Visitors to Wolverhampton can explore an Edwardian house set within 48 acres of parkland that also serves as a local museum. The property, known as Bantock House Museum and Park, is operated by Wolverhampton City Council’s Arts and Museums service and lies close to the village of Bradmore. The building originated in the 1730s as New Merridale Farm, was enlarged at the start of the 19th century and renamed Merridale House. Around 1864 the canal and railway agent Thomas Bantock acquired it; his son Albert Baldwin Bantock, who served twice as Mayor of Wolverhampton and as High Sheriff of Staffordshire in 1920, further developed the house after his father’s death in 1896. Upon Albert’s childless death in 1938 he bequeathed the house and grounds to the corporation, and the house received its present name in 1940. It is listed at Grade II. The museum presents the domestic life of the Bantock family on the ground floor and, upstairs, displays relating to the people and industries that shaped Wolverhampton, including locally made enamels, steel jewellery and japanned ware. Exhibits are arranged in an informal manner that encourages visitors to sit on period furniture. The surrounding gardens, laid out by Albert Baldwin Bantock and restored in 1998, comprise a sunken Dutch garden, a rose garden featuring varieties such as Blythe Spirit and Chapeau de Napoleon, colourful flower borders and a woodland area that forms part of a nature trail. Within the wider park visitors can use a children’s play area, a small 18-hole golf course, a putting green and football fields, and a cow sculpture by Neil Watt stands at the front of the house.

The Lace Guild Museum

Audnam · 12 miles

A collection of historic and contemporary lace is displayed at The Hollies, the permanent headquarters of The Lace Guild in Stourbridge, West Midlands, with Audnam noted as the nearest town. The museum, operated by the charitable organisation, presents themed exhibitions drawn from its extensive holdings of lace and related artefacts. Exhibitions rotate each quarter and are accessible to the public on Fridays; visits on other days or for larger groups require an appointment, and individual items can be viewed by arrangement. The Lace Guild itself was founded in 1976 after a revival of interest in a craft that has been practised in Britain since the sixteenth century. After acquiring The Hollies in 1985, the charity secured accredited museum status in 2009. In addition to the museum, the Guild maintains a large library, publishes a quarterly magazine and instructional books, and runs courses, a summer school and an annual convention. An email service titled “Artefact of the Month” allows subscribers to receive a monthly image from the museum’s collection. No admission charges or on-site facilities such as a café or shop are mentioned in the source material.

Barrow Hill Local Nature Reserve Black Country Geosite

Cooper's Bank · 12 miles

An eroded volcanic plug dominates the landscape of Pensnett, offering a striking reminder of ancient geological activity in the West Midlands. The site, known as Barrow Hill Local Nature Reserve, lies close to St Mark’s Church and Russells Hall Hospital and can be reached from Vicarage Lane. Managed by Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council, the reserve was formally established in 2005 and is listed as a local nature reserve and Black Country geosite, with Cooper’s Bank identified as the nearest town. The hill represents the sole confirmed instance of surface volcanic activity in the Black Country, its dolerite core formed around 315 million years ago during the Carboniferous period. Bronze-age burial chambers once stood on its northern flank, dating from roughly 2000 BC to 700 BC, though later quarrying removed these barrows and exposed the hard volcanic rock. In the 19th century the dolerite was extracted for road-stone, leaving visible quarry faces and hexagonal pillars that illustrate the cooling of magma. A footpath now traces part of a private railway once owned by the Earl of Dudley, preserving another layer of the area’s industrial heritage. Today the reserve encompasses a mixture of woodland, meadow and ponds, with Barrow Hill Copse providing shaded walks. The summit, rising to just over 150 m above sea level, bears a large cross commissioned by St Mark’s Church. No admission fee or visitor facilities are recorded, and access is free via the public footpaths that wind through the reserve.

Wren's Nest National Nature Reserve Black Country Geosite

Wrens Nest · 14 miles

The limestone outcrops at Wren’s Nest National Nature Reserve form a world-recognised geological showcase in the north-west of Dudley town centre, within the Dudley Metropolitan Borough of the West Midlands. Designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest, a Local Nature Reserve, a national nature reserve and a Scheduled Ancient Monument, the area protects both its distinctive rock formations and a range of wildlife, including several bird species, locally rare plants such as small scabious, milkwort and quaking grass, and a nationally important hibernation site for seven bat species. The site’s chief attraction is the exceptionally diverse Silurian coral-reef fossil record, with more than 700 fossil types recorded, 86 of which are unique to the location. Notable finds include the trilobite *Calymene blumenbachii*, historically called the Dudley Bug. The exposed limestone belongs to the Wenlock Group, laid down around 420 million years ago, and displays ripple marks from an ancient tropical sea. Remnants of the industrial era remain visible in the Seven Sisters cavern – once extending over 100 metres underground – and the adjoining underground canal that once linked to the Dudley Tunnel complex. Although the cavern was filled after a roof collapse in 2001, the surface opening provides insight into the region’s quarrying heritage, which peaked at an annual output of 20 000 tonnes of limestone before quarrying ceased in 1925. Scientific interest continues, with researchers visiting the former quarry and tunnels to examine the geological and mining legacy. The reserve’s status as the United Kingdom’s first geology-focused national nature reserve (designated 1956) underscores its importance, while its protection as a Scheduled Ancient Monument since 2004 safeguards the surviving limestone industry features for future study.

Saltwells National Nature Reserve Black Country Geosite

Pear Tree Lane - Industrial Estate · 14 miles

The site offers a rare combination of natural woodland, grassland and industrial archaeology within the West Midlands. Established in 1981, the 247-acre Saltwells Local Nature Reserve lies in the Netherton area, roughly two miles south of Dudley and adjacent to the Pear Tree Lane industrial estate. Its boundaries follow the Cinderbank Road (A459) to the north-east and the A4100 to the south, while the Tipsyford and Mousesweet brooks mark its western edge. Within the reserve lie two Sites of Special Scientific Interest – Doulton’s Claypit and Brewin’s Canal Section – and a scheduled ancient monument that records medieval coal-mining activity. Visitors can walk along Hall Lane, the historic route to the demolished Netherton Hall, and encounter the small Daphne Pool set among gorse-covered slopes of Netherton Hill. The southern portion, Saltwells Wood, is an 18th-century plantation noted for bluebell carpets in spring and contains wooden and metal sculptures created with input from local schools and artists. Remains of opencast and underground coal extraction, as well as the canal cutting dating from the 1858 improvements, are visible along the paths. The Saltwells Inn, an 18th-century public house within the reserve, provides traditional British pub fare and local ales, offering a convenient stop for walkers. No specific admission fee or opening hours are detailed. Access is via Cinderbank Road (A459), the A4100 and the footpaths that run through the reserve.

Priory Park

Priory Estate · 14 miles

Priory Park is a public park located in Dudley, West Midlands, England, just north of the town centre. It is in the historic grounds of Dudley Priory.