How well do you really know the place you call home?

There are buildings around Thetford and the Brecks that most of us pass regularly without ever stepping inside.

There are streets whose names hint at stories we’ve never heard. Buildings that have been altered half a dozen times. Old industries that shaped the towns we live in today but have almost completely disappeared.

For ten days this September, we get an excuse to be nosy.

Heritage Open Days returns from Friday 11 to Sunday 20 September 2026, giving people free access to thousands of historic places, walks, talks and experiences across England.

And this year there is plenty happening close to home.

Heritage Open Days is England’s largest community-led festival of history and culture. Norfolk alone has more than 350 events listed for 2026, with everything from museums and historic buildings to places normally closed to the public.

What is Heritage Open Days?

The idea is wonderfully simple.

For ten days, organisations, volunteers and property owners open up places, share stories and organise experiences that help us understand the history sitting on our doorstep.

And they’re free.

Some are historic buildings. Others are exhibitions, guided walks, gardens, archives or opportunities to see somewhere from an entirely different perspective.

The 2026 national theme is Everyday Histories, exploring the working lives and ordinary people who helped shape the places we know today.

That theme feels particularly appropriate for Thetford and the Brecks.

Our history isn’t confined to grand houses. It’s there in flint, forestry, industry, religion, railways, rivers, workers’ housing and the buildings we walk past every day.

What’s happening in Thetford for Heritage Open Days 2026?

We’ve had a look through this year’s programme and picked out a few events close to home.

Votes for Women at Ancient House Museum

Saturday 12 September, 10am to 5pm

Ancient House Museum on White Hart Street is holding a special Heritage Open Day exploring the suffrage movement within the wider history of protest and reform in Thetford and Norfolk.

Costumed characters will help tell the stories of campaigners including Princess Catherine and Princess Sophia Duleep Singh, alongside other local women involved in the movement.

Pre-booking is preferred and, although the event is free, it is expected to be busy.

200 years of St Mary’s Catholic Church

Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 September, 11am to 5pm

Here’s one that even people who’ve lived in Thetford for years may not have explored.

St Mary’s Catholic Church on Newtown celebrates its 200th anniversary in 2026 and is opening the church and its extensive gardens for the weekend.

There will be historical displays, talks and guided tours telling the story of a church dating back to 1826.

No advance booking is required.

Brandon has gone big on local history this year

Just down the road, Brandon has an excellent programme that digs into the industries, landscapes and people responsible for shaping the town.

Brandon Heritage Trail

Saturday 12 September, 10.30am and 1.30pm

A guided walk through Brandon following its new heritage trail.

The route explores the town’s days as a busy market centre before heading towards its historic riverside inns, the river crossing and the role navigation played in moving goods in and out of Brandon.

It finishes through the green spaces around Victoria Avenue.

Pre-booking is preferred.

From the workhouse to wartime Brandon

Monday 14 September, 9.30am

This guided walk explores Town Street and a fascinating mixture of Brandon’s social and industrial history.

There’s the old workhouse and almshouses, alongside stories of brickworks, the fur factory, sawmill, timber processing and the Second World War army camps that became part of local life.

It even attempts to answer a question some Brandon residents will recognise: why do locals call Town Street “Tip”?

Flint, bricks, fur and forest

Tuesday 15 September, 10am

If you want to understand why Brandon looks and feels the way it does today, this is a particularly interesting one.

Starting at Brandon Country Park, the walk explores industries including flint knapping and fur processing before looking at the Engine House and the extraordinary story of Edward Bliss.

Bliss was a 19th-century gunflint industrialist who planted around one million trees on his estate, land that would ultimately form part of the Thetford Forest landscape we know today.

The Night Brandon Roared

Thursday 17 and Sunday 20 September, 10am

This one is less about buildings and more about a moment in local history.

Local historian Darren Norton tells the story of the 1919 Brandon Riot, walking through the locations where tensions erupted following the First World War as returning servicemen faced unemployment and hardship.

Pre-booking is preferred.

Brandon’s pubs and industries

Friday 18 September, 10.30am

A 2.5-mile guided walk looking at Brandon’s industrial past, including flint knapping, fur processing and the town’s former gasworks.

There are also stories of at least eight pubs once found along the route, plus the curious question of how Monkey Stile Lane got its name.

Pre-booking is required for this one.

Brandon’s river history

Sunday 20 September, 1.30pm

Starting at the Bridge Hotel, this guided walk explores how Brandon’s river shaped working and recreational life.

Expect stories of lightermen, maltings, riverside inns, eel fishing, willow traps, regattas, swimming and boating, followed by an exhibition and refreshments.

Fancy something a little further into Breckland?

Great Cressingham Victorian School

Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 September, 11am to 4pm

The Old School at Great Cressingham offers the chance to step inside a restored Victorian village school.

Visitors can experience old-fashioned lessons and routines, traditional games and music while the building is brought to life by its schoolmistress character.

It’s free, family friendly and doesn’t require advance booking.

What can old buildings teach us about our own homes?

There is another reason we enjoy events like this.

We spend a considerable amount of our working lives looking around homes.

Walk through a property that has survived for 100, 200 or 300 years and you begin noticing why certain things have lasted.

Original timber.

Deep window reveals.

Fireplaces.

Floorboards.

Sash windows.

Brickwork.

Proportions that somehow still feel right centuries later.

You also see evidence that old buildings have never really stood still.

They’ve been extended, divided, reopened, repurposed and adapted by generation after generation.

That’s useful perspective if you own an older property yourself.

Older homes don’t always respond well to modern solutions

One of the most important things to understand about period properties is that they weren’t necessarily built to behave like modern houses.

Traditional solid walls and materials such as lime were designed to manage moisture differently from modern cavity-wall construction.

Applying modern impermeable materials indiscriminately to an older building can sometimes create problems rather than solve them.

That doesn’t mean an older property shouldn’t be modernised.

Far from it.

It simply means understanding what you’re working with before deciding what to change.

Original features can also be surprisingly resilient. A traditional timber sash window that’s been in place for a century may sometimes need skilled repair rather than replacement.

Knowing the difference can protect both the character and value of a home.

Your house has a history too

Heritage Open Days can also be a good prompt to investigate your own property.

Local archives, historic maps, old photographs, census records, Land Registry documents and previous deeds can reveal an extraordinary amount.

You might discover when your street first appeared.

What stood on the land before your house.

How the neighbourhood developed.

Who lived there generations ago.

Or why a seemingly ordinary feature of your home exists at all.

For owners of older properties around Thetford and the surrounding villages, that history can become part of what makes the home special.

And one day, it might be part of the story that makes its next owner fall for it too.

How do I book Heritage Open Days events?

Heritage Open Days runs nationally from 11 to 20 September 2026.

All official Heritage Open Days events are free, although some have limited capacity and need to be booked in advance. Norfolk’s main ticket release opened on 26 August, while some individual organisers operate their own booking systems.

The easiest place to explore everything available is the official Heritage Open Days website:

heritageopendays.org.uk

For Norfolk events, the dedicated Norfolk Heritage Open Days programme is also worth exploring:

norfolkheritageopendays.co.uk

With more than 350 Norfolk events listed online this year, the examples above are only a small selection.

And that’s rather the point.

Sometimes one of the best days out isn’t somewhere you’ve never been.

It’s discovering something you never knew about somewhere you’ve lived for years.

Frequently Asked Questions

When are Heritage Open Days 2026?

Heritage Open Days runs from Friday 11 September to Sunday 20 September 2026 across England.

Are Heritage Open Days events really free?

Yes. Official Heritage Open Days events are free to attend. Some have limited capacity and require advance booking, while others allow visitors simply to turn up.

Are there Heritage Open Days events in Thetford in 2026?

Yes. Thetford events include Votes for Women at Ancient House Museum on 12 September and the 200th anniversary open weekend at St Mary’s Catholic Church on 19 and 20 September.

What Heritage Open Days events are happening in Brandon?

Brandon has an extensive 2026 programme including guided walks exploring its heritage trail, Town Street, historic industries, pubs, river history and the 1919 Brandon Riot, alongside other events and exhibitions.

Do I need to book Heritage Open Days in advance?

It depends on the event. Some require or recommend advance booking because capacity is limited, while others are drop-in events. Always check the individual listing before travelling.

Where can I find all the Heritage Open Days events near Thetford?

The national Heritage Open Days website allows you to search the 2026 programme by location. Norfolk also has its own Heritage Open Days website with more than 350 events listed across the county.

How can I research the history of my house in Norfolk?

Historic maps, census records, photographs, local archives, old title documents and local history societies are useful starting points. For an older property, you may be able to trace when the building appeared, previous occupants and how the surrounding area changed.

Does owning an older or historic property affect its value?

It can. Period character, original features and an interesting history can all contribute to buyer appeal, but condition, maintenance requirements, location, alterations and any listed-building or conservation restrictions also matter. The effect on value is specific to the individual property.

Sources

• Heritage Open Days, official 2026 programme: 11–20 September 2026.
• Norfolk Heritage Open Days, 2026 programme and booking information.
• Heritage Open Days: Ancient House Museum, Thetford, Votes for Women.
• Heritage Open Days: St Mary’s Catholic Church, Thetford, 200th anniversary open weekend.
• Heritage Open Days: Brandon 2026 event programme, including local heritage and industrial-history walks.
• Heritage Open Days: Great Cressingham Victorian School Open Day.

Article by Andrew Overman | Partner | Location Location East