Middleton Hall Retirement Village celebrates 125th anniversary
Middleton Hall Retirement Village, in Middleton St George, marked the milestone with parties, a fireworks display, a 125-mile exercise bike challenge, and the burial of a time capsule.
The community also enjoyed history talks, guided estate trails, and Victorian-themed activities.
A giant tipi was erected for the occasion on the Middleton Hall estate’s bowling green (Image: Tracy Kidd)
Middleton Hall was first established on April 23, 1900, and has since evolved into an award-winning, employee-owned retirement village.
It features independent retirement properties, luxury care services, and supported apartments.
A series of events were organised for the village’s property owners, care residents, families, and the teams of co-owners that work at the retirement village.Alistair Griffin and Ignite Concerts performed at three concerts to mark Middleton Hall’s 125th Celebrations (Image: Tracy Kidd)
A giant tipi was erected for the occasion on the estate’s bowling green and was the heart of the week’s celebrations.
It was the venue for three celebratory concerts by singer-songwriter Alistair Griffin and Ignite Concerts for residents from across the village and co-owners featuring a mix of British classics, timeless hits, and pop favourites, along with a fireworks display.
Throughout the week, the tipi also hosted an anniversary coffee morning and quiz and an opportunity to explore Victorian artefacts from Preston Hall Museum.Cutting a garland made by the Estates team to start the Middleton Hall 125th celebrations heritage garden trail (Image: Tracy Kidd)
A day of indoor and outdoor traditional carnival games rounded off the week’s events.
Other highlights of the programme of anniversary celebrations included a talk about the hall’s history by Middleton Hall’s founder trustee Jeremy Walford, a presentation about the Stockton and Darlington Railway 200 celebrations by the National Railway Museum team, and the chance to discover more about a range of metal detecting finds found on the estate.
Residents and families enjoyed a guided tour of the grounds followed by a ceremony to bury a time capsule with artefacts reflecting life at Middleton Hall Retirement Village today to help preserve a snapshot of the present for future generations.The Estates team led a guided heritage garden trail as part of Middleton Hall’s 125th celebrations (Image: Tracy Kidd)
Middleton Hall Retirement Village’s director of hospitality, Adam Wardale, said: “We are very proud of the friendly and supportive community we have in our unique retirement village and it was wonderful to be celebrating such an impressive milestone together.
“It’s quite a feat to be marking 125 years and our teams pulled out all the stops and created an incredible week that will last long in everyone’s memories.”
Middleton Hall’s co-owners enjoyed some cakes made for the celebratory events (Image: Tracy Kidd) Middleton Hall Retirement Village founder Jeremy Walford gave a talk about Middleton Hall’s 125 year history (Image: Tracy Kidd)