In 2014 the ‘Save Trent Park’ campaign was launched by Jason Charalambous to secure a publicly accessible future for the House, and ensure its incredible story can be shared with the public.

The hard-fought campaign received widespread public support and press coverage - with over 1,000 people attending one of several public meetings, over 10,000 people signing petitions, high profile endorsements from Sir David Jason OBE and others, and adoption by the Prince's Regeneration Trust BRICK Mentoring Scheme.

After two years of intense campaigning, the objectives of the campaign were met with the principle of a museum enshrined in Berkeley Homes's planning application for redevelopment of the site, and a Memorandum of Understanding being struck with the developer to incoportate a museum within Trent Park House. The Trent Park Museum Trust was therefore established in 2016 to develop and ultimately operate the museum in the House, and we have since been working tirelessly in developing a masterplan to secure a safe future for the Secret Listeners' story.

With your support, we will complete the following:

Complete the Conversion

We will complete the conservation, redecoration and fit-out of the historic interiors in readiness to open to the public by June 2025

Open Visitor Cafe

We will establish a new visitor café with terrace seating area, and develop a compelling corporate and hospitality hire offer within a suite of fine rooms on the ground floor.

Engage Local Communities

We shall continue to engage local communities through curriculum-focused learning programmes for schools, and volunteer activity projects that bring a new cultural offer and engagement opportunities directly to our local residents

The Campaign So Far

2012

After the war, Trent Park House was a training college, then Middlesex University, a major centre for dance and drama education. Middlesex University vacated the house in 2012.

2013

Trent Park House was purchased by a private Malaysian university, who then abandoned their plans due to financial difficulties. The site was abandoned and the building fell into disrepair.

2014

The ‘Save Trent Park’ campaign was launched by Jason Charalambous with the aim of continuing the educational legacy of the estate by establishing a museum within the mansion house.

2015

The campaign receives widespread pubic and media support, with well attended public meetings and two petitions gathering over 10,000 signatures. Historic England intervenes with a Notice of Works to ensure the collapsing terrace is restored.

2016

Following the success of the campaign and an agreement with the site’s owner Berkeley Homes to support the establishment of a museum, the Trent Park Museum Trust was established to secure the future of the House.

2017

Enfield Council award planning consent for Berkeley Homes to develop the wider site as residences, with a special requirement to ensure a museum is founded on the ground and basement floors of the House.

2019

The last surviving Secret Listener, Eric Mark helps support the campaign during a special reception at the House of Lords.

2020

The Trust secures vital feasibility funding from National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Rothschild Foundation and the Architectural Heritage Fund, enabling audience research and early project development support. Eric Mark, the last Secret Listener, passes away.

2021

The Trust secures significant capital funding from the Wolfson Foundation and the Pilgrim Trust, enabling initial architectural and exhibition design work and construction costing (QS).

2022

The Al Thani Collection Fund awards the Trust a major grant toward the restoration of the ground floor rooms, and National Lottery Heritage Fund awards a £225,000 grant toward work with schools and volunteer researchers to create a ‘Digital Museum’ while the bricks-and-mortar museum in under construction.

2023

The Trust secures significant capital funding from the Clore Duffield Foundation and the Foyle Foundation, which will enable a dedicated Clore Learning Space for schools groups and visitors, support the costs of the immersive exhibition, and enable the opening learning programme.

2024

In the campaign’s 10th anniversary year, the Trust celebrates the Digital Museum launch with the wider Enfield community at the Dugdale Centre. The 75% mark in the fundraising campaign is surpassed. The Trust receives capital support from the Historic Houses Foundation to restore the Chinese Drawing Room.

Our Vision

Our vision is to create an immersive learning experience for national and international visitors, opening one of London’s grandest houses to the public and revealing the incredible story of the Secret Listeners which has remained hidden in the house for over 70 years. Visitors will travel through magnificently restored and furnished rooms – Sir Philip Sassoon’s socialite and political world – to reveal the later clandestine operation against Hitler’s top military commanders.

01

Tell the Secret Story

The stories hidden within the fabric of Trent Park House reveal a varied, dynamic and nationally important history. This is a powerful and evocative house, where the conversations of the past can echo across time to reach us today and inform us about how our world has come to be as it is.

Our aim is to highlight the vital role played by the Secret Listeners who were behind some of the most important intelligence discoveries of the War, including: Information about German technology, Axis logistics and morale that would give the Allies the edge to win the Battle of Britain, the Battle of the Atlantic, the North African Campaign and the D‑Day Landings.

02

Create a Hub for Education

At the heart of our mission will be a dedicated learning and engagement programme for schoolchildren, community groups and visitors alike, which will support the experiences created in the house, the WWII and Holocaust education strands in the national curriculum and also the experiences and interests of our varied audiences. This includes veterans and their families, social and military historians, and indeed anyone with an interest in our nation’s history.

03

Create an Engaging Visitor Experience

There is something of the theatrical about Sir Philip Sassoon’s Trent Park, and its subsequent use by the intelligence services during the War – both stories are steeped in artifice and masquerade. We are restoring the main reception rooms with their marble fireplaces, Chinese wallpapers and murals by Rex Whistler with advice from David Mlinaric CBE, the well-known interior designer and specialist in historic decoration.

Our vision for interpretation inside the house recognises this and creates a visitor experience like a play with an enthralling plot. Each act (each storyline) is presented on a different stage (a different room).

Our Supporters

Sybil Charitable Trust
Architectural Heritage Fund
Historic Houses Foundation
HM Sassoon Charitable Trust
Monument Trust
Pennycress Trust
Pilgrim Trust
Reuben Foundation

“Trent Park was such an important establishment during the Second World War and so it would be wonderful to retain the fabric of the place and create a historic landmark as a tribute to the essential work carried out there. In an effort to keep Britain secure in the grips of war, Kendrick was one of the leading intelligence officers working out of Trent Park and so he, in particular, should be remembered with a memorial on site”

Sir David Jason OBE

Support Us – Become a Part of The Journey

Personal Donations

A donation of any size will make an important contribution toward reaching our goal.

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Corporate Donations & Partnerships

A number of options are available to corporate supporters. Please contact us to discuss.

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