Europa Nostra, the leading European heritage civil society network, the National Trust and INTO - the International National Trusts Organisation will organise the first edition of the Inclusive European Heritage Residencies from 14 until 20 June 2025 on the edge of the Peak District, Derbyshire, United Kingdom. Around 10 heritage stakeholders will be selected to come together and discuss heritage best practices, drawing upon the National Trust’s new 10-year Strategy and Hardwick Hall’s response through its new Whole Estate Plan (WEP) process. Participants will explore the twin roles of heritage places in enriching people’s lives and restoring thriving natural environments. 

Based on an exploration of the National Trust (for England, Wales and Northern Ireland)’s brand-new strategy, ‘People and Nature Thriving’, we will use a real property in central England as a case study to explore how heritage professionals and places across Europe can ‘Restore Nature’, ‘End Unequal Access’, and ‘Inspire Millions’. 

Hardwick Hall is a spectacular Elizabethan house filled with rich furnishings and tapestries and was once home to a formidable Elizabethan woman, ‘Bess of Hardwick’. Hardwick provides a physical and contextual backdrop to a week of discussions, learning, and debating about how to care for, present, and tell stories about cultural sites. The 2000-acre estate will provide a case study for exploring the role of historic places in supporting nature to recover and people to thrive. This programme aims to provide a comprehensive and immersive experience, fostering knowledge exchange, active learning, and meaningful dialogue among participants. By focusing on Hardwick's Whole Estate Plan, the Residency will also contribute to the ongoing efforts to elevate Hardwick Hall's impact and significance. Throughout the week, delegates will focus on a ‘live brief’, contributing their ideas and expertise to Hardwick’s plans for the future. These proposals will be presented to key Hardwick personnel and the rest of the group at the end of the week for potential inclusion in the Hardwick Whole Estate Plan. 

The Inclusive European Heritage Residency 2025 is organised in the frame of the network project Europa Nostra Heritage Agora (2025-2028), co-funded by the Creative Europe Programme of the European Union. It builds on the success of the European Heritage Youth Residencies co-organised by Europa Nostra in 2023 and 2024.