Frequently Asked Questions

You can pre-book a ticket online or pay on arrival – Please note: Winterbourne is a cashless site – card payments only.

Yes, on most days, providing you produce a valid HHA membership card. Special event days may incur a charge, please speak to a member of staff for details. Please note that HHA cards are not applicable when visiting as a group.

Yes, as a partner garden we allow entry Monday – Wednesday with a valid card which entitles entry to one person for free. Please note that RHS cards are not applicable when visiting as a group.

No, we are owned and operated by the University of Birmingham.

No, the carer is free when the person they are caring for purchases an admission ticket. If you have a council ID card showing your status as a carer, please bring that along. For our ticketed events, we are able to provide tickets for carers either for free or on a reduced basis where food or other refreshments may make up a percentage of the cost. Please contact us about a ticketed event where you need a carers place.

Visitors to Winterbourne House and Garden are able to access the pool during our opening hours. The woodland access and pool are owned by Edgbaston Golf Club, and on occasion, access may be restricted for them to carry out tree and maintenance works. This is beyond our control, and you may wish to call in advance of your visit should be coming to specifically view the Pool.

Groups visiting Winterbourne can pre-book tours of the garden (minimum 15 people) however guided tours of the house are not usually given as the rooms are too small.

Yes, we can accommodate groups and offer either guided tours or regular admission.  See group visits page for further information including prices, times and catering arrangements.

Most areas of the site are accessible to those who require disabled access.  We have a lift in the house to view the upper exhibition rooms, accessible toilet in the house and most of the garden is accessible.  Mobility scooters are available to hire free of charge to use in the garden on a first come first served basis, we also have a wheelchair available in reception.

Yes, there are spaces in front of the house including 3 blue badge parking spaces and a car park for about 55 more vehicles. On event days the car park gets very full and overflow parking is usually in operation. There is a multi storey car park roughly 5 minutes walk from Winterbourne on Pritchatts Drive where standard University of Birmingham Campus parking  charges apply. 

Coaches may drop off passengers and pick up passengers from Winterbourne but unfortunately there are no coach parking facilities on site.  The nearest coach park is at North gate on the University Campus only a short drive away.

Our events go ahead regardless of the weather. We have an outdoor events policy which has helpful information, but for ticketed events no refunds are granted.

We allow access for assistance dogs only.

Unfortunately paths aren’t suitable for riding bikes or scooters.

Yes.  We have a dedicated private baby change and feed room in the house and a drop down changing table in the Courtyard toilets.

The Terrace Tea Room offers hot and cold drinks, cakes, light lunches including jacket potatoes, sandwiches, soup and a daily hot special. Our menu changes seasonally and where possible we use produce from the garden in our meals. We will also do our best to accommodate any dietary requirements that you have and have a range of free-from options available.

Unfortunately due to the small size of the room we’re not able to reserve tables.

No. The tea room is a part of the visitor experience and admission charges apply.

We welcome students and visitors to use the site to study or work but do request that unless you’re purchasing refreshments in the Tea room, you may be asked to move and use one of the benches in the garden. Winterbourne relies on the income from secondary spends in the shop and Tea room and as there is limited seating, we must make sure there is space for visitors purchasing food or drink to sit down.

You may bring a picnic and are welcome to use one of the many benches located throughout the garden. We are unable to accommodate picnics on the terrace seating as this is reserved for tea room customers only. Please do take your rubbish home with you.

Please refer to our dedicated Photography and Filming page for guidance on photographs in the house and garden, and to enquire regarding availability as this activity is popular.

Unfortunately this is not something that we allow, nor does the University of Birmingham as a whole.

As we are open 7 days a week we are unable to hold weddings, also given the size of our rooms we are unable to cater for the average wedding party. Other venues at the University of Birmingham do cater for weddings visit www.birmingham.ac.uk/conferences-and-events to browse. We can however provide a backdrop for wedding photographs. See the Photographs category for more information.

Unfortunately we are not able to accommodate parties

Winterbourne no longer has conference rooms and aren’t able to facilitate meetings. For bookings and other nearby locations, contact University of Birmingham conference team.

As a RHS accredited centre we offer places on RHS Level 2 and 3 courses. We also have a range of leisure learning courses such as lino printing, flower arranging and willow weaving. All courses are listed on these pages.

If for any reason you are no longer able to attend a course please contact us as soon as possible to discuss. Unfortunately we are not able to refund places on courses. We always attempt to re-advertise your place and if successfully filled, we are sometimes able to reimburse students but this cannot be guaranteed, especially if the cancellation takes place only a short time before the course is due to start.

We are unable to offer led visits and workshops for schools but can offer access to the garden for use on self-led visits from schools. For more information on this email [email protected]

There are several areas of volunteering at Winterbourne, for more information visit the ‘volunteering’ page on the website and download an application form. Volunteering opportunities include: Shop Volunteers, Raffle ticket sellers, Visitor Survey collection, Events and Gardening.

We have a collection policy for items that we are looking to hold and it’s worth getting in touch with our Collections Officer to see if the item you have meets our criteria. Either email [email protected] with photos and a description or write to us.