8th January 2026 

The Bishop of Bath and Wells, The Right Reverend Michael Beasley, today welcomed visitors to The Bishop’s Palace and Gardens in Wells, blessing the new visitor reception which has been created in the heritage site’s Stable Yard area following development.  

The Palace Trust, the charity which manages the site as a heritage visitor attraction, submitted plans for a new ticket office, shop and entranceway in 2025 with the objectives of providing a more accessible and welcoming entrance, enhancing visitor flow into the gardens and optimising the commercial activities of the Palace Trust. 

The new ticket office is located in the Stable Yard area which was probably the site of a yard, kitchen and domestic buildings, possibly with access to the moat, serving the Palace’s late fourteenth century Great Hall. 

As part of the changes a new visitor entrance and retail space have been created in the Stable Yard area, including an accessible entrance and rear exit directly to the Palace’s South Lawn.   

The expanded retail area and extra café seating created from the area which used to house the old ticket office will also provide the Trust with increased trading revenue; income that goes towards the sustainability of the charity and its ability to look after the unique historic site. 

Merryn Kidd, CEO of the Palace Trust, said “We had a bumper year in 2025 welcoming over half a million visitors over the drawbridge and 152,000 visits to our historic site.  The ticket office and shop previously operated out of a small space at the end of Bishops Table café, having been temporarily located there.  

We have really struggled to accommodate visitors with access needs, so are delighted to now open the new Visitor Reception and shop which we believe will make a significant difference to the way we can welcome all of our visitors going forwards.”