What is The Trust?
The Trust owns The Assembly House on behalf of the people of Norwich.
Its commercial functions are operated by The House (Norwich) Ltd through its directors, Iain Wilson and Richard Hughes.
The Trust is a registered charity which has as one of its principal objects developing the creative arts and supporting the local community.
The Trust’s role is to preserve, renovate and keep in good order The Assembly House in Norwich and provide and promote the use of the building for the benefit of the public, particularly those living in Norfolk and Suffolk.
Click on any of the Instagram posts below to see what we’ve been up to recently.
The Voice Project - The Arms of Sleep, 2017
Who runs The Assembly House Trust?
There are currently six Trustees who have overall control of the charity and are charged with responsibility for making sure The Assembly House Trust is doing what it was established to achieve. The Trustees use their skills and experience to support the Trust within the overall supervision of The Charity Commission.
What do trustees do?
The Assembly House Trust’s trustees are the people who are collaboratively responsible for directing the business of the charity and play a vital role at the House. They volunteer their time and work together to make the decisions that are critical to the organisation’s finances, undertakings and plans for the future.
What kinds of roles do trustees have?
A trustee typically works behind the scenes to develop long-term strategies and often add value through coaching initiatives, offering advice and facilitating beneficial relationships, helping create growth plans and assisting in the areas in which they are most skilled.
What are some of the projects in which The Trust has invested in at The House over the past decade?
Converted the East Wing of the building into an 11 bedroom luxury bed and breakfast wing.
Built a new cloakroom complex at the end of the main corridor and relocated the kitchens for the House.
Redecorated the Stone Hall and installed accessible automatic doors.
Installed the exterior lighting system.
Replaced the floor of the Pierce Room on the first floor discovering original Georgian wooden joists showing the carpenters’ marks from that time
Embarked on an extensive programme of interior and exterior redecoration, all of which have been carried out to the exacting standards of Historic England and Norwich City Council Heritage and Conservation Department bearing in mind the status of the House as a Grade I-listed building and a Scheduled Ancient Monument.
Restored the wooden floors in the principal rooms to reveal floors which, in some cases, are the original Georgian ones.
Restored the West Wing and converted the first and second floors to four luxury bedrooms.
Resurfaced the car park and driveway.
The Assembly House Trust’s Arts Role.
The Trust promotes the arts, in particular the performance of plays, drama, music, opera, dance, film and the exhibition of pictures, sculptures and other artistic, literary or scientific works. As part of its mission of public benefit, The Assembly House Trust also supports many charity and community organisations, offering subsidised use of the House for events.
How is The Assembly House Trust funded?
The Trust receives the vast majority of its funding through annual payments received from The House (Norwich) Ltd which operates the commercial functions at The Assembly House.
Registered Charity Name: The Assembly House Trust
Charity Registration Number: 1111391
Charity Scheme Document: Download PDF
Company Registration Number: 05486947