Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft

What Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft does

Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft is a UK registered charity (Charity Number 1126970) operating a single-site museum at Lodge Hill Lane, Ditchling, East Sussex, inside the South Downs National Park. Founded in 1985 by sisters Joanna and Hilary Bourne, the museum preserves and presents a nationally significant collection of art and craft works associated with the historic Guild of St Joseph and St Dominic — a Roman Catholic artistic community founded in 1920 by Eric Gill, Joseph Cribb, Edward Johnston and Hilary Pepler — covering direct carving, wood engraving, printing, typography, weaving and silversmithing. The award-winning site links a Victorian schoolhouse with contemporary galleries designed by Adam Richards Architects in a £2.3 million 2013 Heritage Lottery redevelopment, and an 18th-century Cart Lodge houses the on-site shop and café. The museum is temporarily closed to the public from 23 February 2026 for strategic reflection.

The institution serves general public visitors, researchers and students, university partners, and the local Ditchling community through a mix of two temporary exhibitions per year, permanent collection displays, oral history projects (Sussex Retold with the University of Sussex; Woven Lives), educational workshops for children and adults, by-appointment research access to artist monographs, private press books, journals and correspondence, and a biodiversity-supporting dye garden. Distribution is through physical visits, online ticketing via arttickets.org.uk and an on-site retail/café operation. Marketing relies on organic social media (Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest), email newsletters, exhibition catalogues and partnership-driven PR with academic and cultural institutions.

Revenue is generated from one-time exhibition ticket sales (from £6.50, with under-18s free and group discounts for 10+ visitors), on-site shop and café operations, donations and legacy gifts, and recurring charitable funding from the National Lottery via Arts Council England and the Heritage Lottery Fund. The go-to-market is community-led, with partnerships — University of Sussex, AHRC, Quentin Blake Centre for Illustration, Emma Mason Gallery, South Downs National Park, Visit Ditchling, The Living Coast, Polish Cultural Institute, Worshipful Company of Basketmakers — supporting programming, fundraising and audience reach. No proprietary technology or AI systems are identified; the organisation is supported by approximately 17 staff, led by Director Steph Fuller with a board of trustees including Gavin Ambrose, Mathew Clayton, David Tibble and Nathaniel Hepburn, and Honorary Legal Counsel Lavinia de Nazelle of Mishcon de Reya.

Name

Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft

Legal name

Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft

Website

https://ditchlingmuseumartcraft.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft is a UK registered charity running a single-site museum in Ditchling, East Sussex, preserving a nationally significant collection tied to the Guild of St Joseph and St Dominic. It serves general visitors, researchers and students through temporary exhibitions, collection displays, oral history projects, workshops and on-site retail.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Museum and cultural heritage services

NAICS

Museums (71211), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121), Museums (712110), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYTHAJADAA

Art Museums

Travel & Hospitality/Tours, Attractions & Experiences/Museums, Galleries & Cultural Institutions

SECONDARYTHAJADAH

Art Galleries & Exhibition Spaces (Commercial & Nonprofit)

Travel & Hospitality/Tours, Attractions & Experiences/Museums, Galleries & Cultural Institutions

SECONDARYTHAJAKAA

Arts & Crafts Workshops (Painting, Pottery, Ceramics, Sculpture)

Travel & Hospitality/Tours, Attractions & Experiences/Workshops & Classes (Arts, Crafts, Skills & Local Lessons)

Keywords

• Art museum exhibitions
• Craft heritage collection
• Cultural education programs
• Oral history projects
• Museum retail and café

Headquarters

HQ city

Ditchling

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Ticket Sales: Revenue generated from visitor admission to exhibitions and the museum collection
2. Retail and Café Operations: The museum operates a shop and café in the Cart Lodge, an 18th-century farm building on site
3. Donations and Acquisitions: The museum accepts donations and has an acquisitions policy; also receives support through legacy gifts
4. Charitable Funding: Supported by National Lottery through Arts Council England, Heritage Lottery Fund, and other charitable sources

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft operates a single-site museum in Ditchling, East Sussex, presenting a nationally significant permanent collection of art and craft works tied to the Guild of St Joseph and St Dominic, alongside two temporary exhibitions per year. The museum also delivers educational workshops, oral history projects, and research access, and runs a shop and café in the Cart Lodge building. The institution is a registered UK charity (No. 1126970).

Product overview

Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft is a single-site museum offering a unified experience centered on its nationally significant collection of art and craft works, particularly those associated with the historic Guild of St Joseph and St Dominic. The museum provides temporary exhibitions (typically two per year), permanent collection displays, oral history projects (Sussex Retold and Woven Lives), educational workshops for children and adults, research access to its collection, a dye garden, and operates a shop and café within the historic Cart Lodge building. The museum is currently temporarily closed to the public from February 2026 to allow time for reflection and planning for its next phase.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Museum Exhibitions and Permanent Collection Displays
• Sussex Retold: Oral History Project
• Woven Lives: Oral History & Creative Writing
• Museum Workshops and Events
• Research and Collection Access
• Temporary Exhibitions (Rotating Annual Programme)
• Museum Shop and Café

Quantifiable outcome

• The 2013 £2.3 million redevelopment transformed the museum with purpose-built galleries, collection store, and Clore Learning Space
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• University of SussexcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSussex Retold oral history project partnership gathering new series of oral history interviews with people connected to Ditchling. Project led by University of Sussex drawing on arts, crafts, music and folklore to celebrate voices and histories of the region.
• Emma Mason GallerycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner for Tadek Beutlich: On and Off the Loom exhibition (2025). Gallery holds the estate of Tadek Beutlich archive and collaborated on the retrospective exhibition.
• The Living Coast (Biosphere Cultural Heritage Network)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDMAC is part of The Living Coast's BioCultural Heritage Tourism Project (BCHT), collaborating with peers to generate insight and innovation in cultural practice
• South Downs National ParkminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for environmental projects including 'In Their Footsteps' walking app, and collaborative initiatives helping visitors understand the surrounding natural environment
• Visit DitchlingminorGTM or Marketing PartnerLocal tourism partnership promoting and supporting local businesses and visitor economy in Ditchling
• Quentin Blake Centre for IllustrationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partnership for 'Bloomin' Brilliant: The Life and Work of Raymond Briggs' exhibition (2024), joining up with the touring show from the Quentin Blake Centre
• Polish Cultural Institute in LondonminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSupported the Tadek Beutlich: On and Off the Loom exhibition celebrating the Polish-born textile artist

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Pallant House Gallery: Pallant House Gallery in Chichester, West Sussex, is a regional art museum housing a nationally significant collection of modern British art. Comparable to DMAC as a UK regional art museum with a curated collection, temporary exhibitions, and educational programming.
• Watts Gallery - Artists' Village: Watts Gallery in Compton, Surrey, is a small museum dedicated to the artist G.F. Watts and Victorian-era art and craft. Comparable to DMAC as a UK art and craft heritage museum with a single-site location, gallery, shop, and educational mission.
• Farley Farm House: Farley Farm House in East Sussex was the home of photographer Lee Miller and artist Roland Penrose. Comparable to DMAC as a small, single-site Sussex heritage museum dedicated to 20th-century artists with personal connection to the site.
• De La Warr Pavilion: De La Warr Pavilion in Bexhill-on-Sea is a regional arts and cultural centre hosting contemporary exhibitions, music, and events. Comparable to DMAC as a publicly-supported cultural destination in Southeast England, though its scope is broader (including music and live events).
• Charleston: Charleston in East Sussex is a historic house museum dedicated to the Bloomsbury Group artists. DMAC and Charleston are direct peers: both are single-site, Southeast-England art house museums focused on early 20th-century artistic communities, and the current DMAC trustee Nathaniel Hepburn also leads the Charleston team.

Emerging players

• Crafts Council Gallery: The Crafts Council is the UK national development agency for craft, with gallery exhibitions and educational programming. Comparable to DMAC in its focus on UK craft and applied arts, though it operates as a development agency rather than a permanent-collection museum.

Regional players

• Standen (National Trust): Standen is a National Trust Arts and Crafts house in East Sussex, near DMAC's location. Comparable as a heritage site in the same region with Arts and Crafts movement significance, though it operates as a historic house rather than a museum.
• Jerwood Gallery (now Hastings Contemporary): Hastings Contemporary operates a regional contemporary art gallery on the Southeast coast. Comparable to DMAC as a regional Sussex/SE-coast art institution with ticketed exhibitions, though its focus is contemporary rather than craft heritage.

Broad incumbents

• Tate (Tate Britain / Tate Modern): Tate is the UK's national museum of modern and contemporary art with major sites in London, Liverpool, and St Ives. Comparable as a UK art museum network, but vastly larger in scale and with a much broader contemporary focus rather than craft heritage.
• Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A): The V&A is the UK's national museum of art, design, and craft with a substantially larger collection that includes many of the same craft disciplines DMAC celebrates (weaving, silversmithing, wood engraving, printing, typography).

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/museumartcraft
• Facebookfacebook.com/museumartcraft
• Instagraminstagram.com/museumartcraft
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ditchling-museum-of-art-craft

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft