A new exhibition celebrating 50 years of volunteer work at Upton Country Park is set to open in Poole, Dorset, on Saturday 7 March 2026. The event will be held at The Gallery Upstairs, located above the tea rooms at the estate, to mark half a century of community support and conservation.
The Friends of Upton Country Park group was first started in May 1976, at the same time the park was opened to the public. Since its founding, the volunteer-led charity has raised more than £1 million to restore the historic house and its 160-acre grounds.
The exhibition will showcase the group’s role in saving the estate from falling into ruin and turning it into a popular local destination. This includes their £125,000 contribution to the £2.3 million Discovery Project, which built the park’s welcome centre and restored historic landscapes.
The Poole & East Dorset Art Society manages the gallery space in partnership with BCP Council, the current owners of the estate. Organisers hope the showcase will help recruit more volunteers and bring more visitors to the park’s tea rooms and shops.
About this article: This story was put together with the help of AI tools and checked by a real person on our team. We're a small crew trying to cover as much of the UK as we can on a limited budget. We're getting better every day - but we're not perfect yet. If something looks off, let us know. You're part of the process.
