Arts and Crafts house open to public (From Wilts and Gloucestershire Standard)

Arts and Crafts house open to public

OAKRIDGE Lynch is a fascinating village with a lot of history and houses which date back to the cloth industry in the Stroud valleys during the 16th century.

Much later it was a centre of the Arts and Crafts Movement which celebrates its centenary this year, when Edward Gimson and the Barnsley brothers lived in nearby Sapperton and Norman Jewson actually lived in Oakridge and designed several local houses.

Woodcarver William Simmons was a local man, blacksmith Norman Bucknall set up his forge in neighbouring Waterlane, while other locals such as Harry Davoll, Fred Gardener, Tom Hunt and Percy Tanner all made their mark on the movement.

When Oakridge Lynch opens 11 gardens and holds an arts and crafts exhibition in the Methodist Chapel on June 25, from 2-6pm, this is also a chance to see a Cotswold Village which played its part in a much larger artistic movement.

Proceeds from the afternoon will go to the Cotswold Care Hospice in Minchinhampton and also to improve Oakridge's unusual little hilltop cemetery.