Mrs Smith’s Cottage

Be More Hilda: The Cottage Kitchen & Garden Experience will transform Mrs Smith’s Cottage into a living, income-generating heritage experience inspired by Hilda Smith’s values of resourcefulness and sustainability.

Through hands-on workshops, seasonal events, and cottage-produced goods, visitors will learn to bake, grow, and live more sustainably. The project builds on the existing “Be More Hilda” initiative, turning interpretation into active participation. It will increase visitor numbers, boost on-site spend, and create a new, repeatable income stream while engaging volunteers and strengthening skills. Ultimately, the project supports long-term resilience by combining authentic storytelling with sustainable practice and commercial opportunity.

About Mrs Smith’s Cottage

Mrs Smith’s Cottage tells the story of one woman, in one home, through one century. From ‘the room’, reserved for high days and holidays, to the cosy kitchen where Mrs Smith’s rocking chair still sits by the range, the cottage has remained largely unchanged since the 1800s.

Hilda Smith was always interested in the future and what children had to say. The cottage now includes a Learning Centre which hosts exhibitions, as well as providing hands-on learning for school groups and the NavenBees toddler group.