Shropshire Saturday

23 May, 2026

A few weeks ago we took a trip to Sunnycroft near Telford. This is a small National Trust site open for tours on one weekend every month, followed by a picnic lunch at nearby Attingham Park.

Walking up to the house at Sunnycorft along the driveway lined with giant redwoods felt magical and really pulls your attention away from the fact that the house now sits right in the middle of modern housing estates.

Sunnycroft's Driveway lined with towering Redwoods

We always take a guided tour if there’s one availableas the volunteers are brilliant. They are full of stories and context you’d never pick up just wandering around on your own.

Sunnycroft was built by a local Wellington brewer and later sold to Mary Slaney in the 1890s. She made many improvements to the house, and eventually it passed to Joan Lander who installed electricity in 1964 which feels surprisingly late! She gifted the house to the National Trust in 1997, and it opened to the public in 1999.

The greenhouse at Sunnycroft is something special. It’s believed to be one of the few surviving Halliday conservatories, and it’s Grade II listed. I could happily spend an afternoon there curled up in a comfortable chair, reading a book, surrounded by the warmth and greenery.

View of Sunny Croft House, Wellington
Grade II Listed Glass Halliday Conservatory at Sunnycroft

As Sunnycroft is a relatively short visit, we decided to head to Attingham Park after deciding we didn't fancy walking the Wrekin. A picnic lunch in the ground was top of the agenda, then a walk around the deer park to play some more with our new camera. We skipped the house this time as we’d visited last year. It was a glorious early spring day and I was very glad I’d put on sun cream. The grounds at Attingham are always worth a revisit! How I wish this was our local property!