Visitor Information

LOCATION

Most of our classes are at the Quaker Meeting House at 1a Bourne Street, Wilmslow, SK9 5HD (next to the Wilmslow Guild - the brown door in the brick building in the centre of this photo). We are 0.8 miles from the railway station and 0.5 miles from the town centre.

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There is street parking available along Bourne Street and nearby roads, including Buckingham Road and Westward Road. Please do not park in the Guild car park, adjacent office spaces or in Windsor Ave directly opposite. The Quaker Meeting House is a short walk from these areas.

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Saturday Classes
Please note that on Saturdays, classes may be held at a different, smaller location. Contact us in advance to confirm the location and to check for any potential class restrictions on that day.

 

 

 

There is more information about our venue on the "Find Us" page and some photos on the "Teaching Space" page.

 

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SCHOOL HOURS

Term dates are on this page.​

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Classes are held from 9 AM to 1 PM. We offer complete flexibility—arrive late or leave early as needed without informing us in advance.

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Tea Break & Nearby Amenities
We take a tea break at 11 AM, with snacks and homemade treats. If you prefer something more substantial, there’s a coffee shop in the Wilmslow Guild (just a 30-second walk away), as well as a small Co-op supermarket (5 minutes' walk) and Gail's coffee shop (7 minutes' walk). 

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Any school day is fine to visit, although Thursdays are generally best for CPD and for new student visitors. Peter is in every day and Malcolm is usually in on Thursdays and Fridays. We really don't need any notice for teachers or for students who have visited us on previous occasions, you can just turn up.

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The number of teachers and students varies considerably from day to day and from week to week. We have 15 trainees (April 2026), but most are part-time, so on an average day there about 4 teachers and about 6 students, with a wide variation.

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INFORMATION FOR VISITING TEACHERS

We welcome qualified teachers to visit our classes anytime, with no prior notice required. Whether you want to observe or participate, you're free to come and go as you please. You can be assured of a warm welcome, turns (if you want them) and tea and snacks, and are free to do as much or as little teaching as you like.

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Visiting newer teachers have two choices, to come either as a teacher or as a postgraduate student.

• As a Teacher: Have some 'turns' and work with trainees as much or as little as you prefer. A £25 contribution towards overheads is appreciated

• As a Postgraduate Student: Receive hands-on work from our most experienced teachers, with supervised hands-on groups on specific days (especially Thursdays). The fee is £66 per day (from October 2025).

INFORMATION FOR VISITING STUDENTS

More information for visiting students is on this page.

 

TRAVEL INFORMATION

By Train: We are a 17-minute walk from Wilmslow mainline station, with frequent, fast trains throughout the country, including to Manchester (15-20 minutes) and London Euston (hourly in under 2 hours). A taxi rank is also available at the station.

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By Car: Wilmslow is easily accessible by car, just minutes from several motorways, with parking available, see above under 'Location'.

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By Air: We are only 4 miles from Manchester International Airport, by far the largest airport in the UK outside of London, and a quick 8-minute train ride or taxi into Wilmslow.

 

ACCOMMODATION AND FOOD

One of our teachers can sometimes accommodate visiting teachers who are coming for several days. Students travelling long distances to attend on a regular basis can sometimes be accommodated by one of our teachers or students.

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There are several hotels and has many restaurants, pubs and coffee shops within a few minutes' walk of the school.

The Wilmslow Racecourse Road Premier Inn is few minutes' walk to the school, in a leafy location. There is another Premier Inn in Handforth that is sometimes cheaper and a 40 minute walk to the school or a train that covers half of the route. Premier Inn is a large chain with a formula of a very nice, very clean and comfortable en-suite room, but usually there are no other facilities. If you can plan ahead, they are usually much cheaper if you book in advance with the non-refundable option.

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The Wilmslow Lodge hotel is a few minutes' walk from the school. It is probably the most convenient place to stay in Wilmslow but it is usually a little more expensive than the others. The rooms are of a slightly higher standard than Premier Inn. The hotel has no other facilities apart from the attached large pub, which is friendly and pleasant, with a good restaurant. Request a room at the back of the hotel at the opposite end to Sainsbury's for the quietest night.

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The King's Arms Hotel (really a pub with rooms) is a 14 minute walk to the school and is sometimes cheaper than the Premier Inn, but is more basic and on a busy road. However, several visiting teachers have told me that they preferred staying there because they are very friendly and helpful.

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Airbnbs - There are a number of possibilities in convenient locations for the school. These can sometimes be considerably cheaper than hotels. We will gradually add to the list below.

Wilmslow House - good location (short walk to the school), very clean, often quite cheap, very good reviews. One teacher recommended this place but notes that there is no lock on the bedroom door and the bathroom is shared with the owners, but they give guests priority use of the bathroom.

A bit more of a walk to the school, although close to the town centre in a semi-rural location with long country walks straight out of the door is this room. It gets very good reviews from our students (and other guests); here's one, "Woodside, Eileen's large house, is located in a peaceful and private enclave, twenty minutes walk away from Wilmslow centre. It offers a pleasant bedroom and your own bathroom and the use of the sizeable kitchen."

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If you are travelling by car, nearly all of the major hotel chains, from the simplest to the most luxurious, can be found serving Manchester Airport.

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Food

Breakfast: Several visitors have told me that the Wilmslow Lodge breakfast is expensive and disappointing and the Wilmslow Premier Inn does not serve breakfast. However, all the coffee shop chains (Costa, Starbucks, Nero, etc) as well as several privately owned shops are within easy walking distance, and also places that offer a good (but more expensive) breakfast, such as Gail's. You can also find a very inexpensive breakfast to take back to your hotel room or have at the school at Greggs; and both Sainsbury's and Waitrose have a large sandwich and pastry selection and a coffee machine. The Sainsbury's right next to the Wilmslow Lodge offers a "meal deal" that is good value and includes a Costa coffee or other beverage.

We provide a tea break at 11.00 that includes tea, coffee and snacks and usually home made cake or bread on a Thursday.

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Lunch and dinner: Wilmslow has a tremendous number of takeaways, cafes, pubs and restaurants of all types and price levels within a very small and easily walkable area, and a restaurant is attached to the hotels above.

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OTHER INFORMATION

If you have time to spare in Wilmslow, there are the usual mix of shops and Hoopers, a very up-market department store. It's a short walk from the town centre to a pleasant riverside walk that extends for several miles, past Quarry Bank with two National Trust tearooms, see below.

 

 If you are staying for a while, there is much to do and see in the area. Manchester, Britain's second city by several measures, is 20 - 30 minutes by train, with the usual big city amenities.

There are many notable National Trust (NT) properties nearby, two in less than 10 minutes' drive. One the most interesting NT properties in the country, Quarry Bank, can be reached by a 30 minute pretty riverside walk that starts a 10 minute walk from the school. The third most visited NT property in the UK, Dunham Massey Hall, Park and Gardens, is a 20 minute drive. Also, some of the best non-NT gardens in the UK, Tatton Park, Arley Hall and RHS Bridgewater are less than a 30 minute drive away. Or you can walk into the beautiful Tatton country park from the charming ancient Cheshire town of Knutsford.

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The Members' area of our website has much of interest, and is open to all qualified AT teachers, all trainee teachers (from any training course) and to regular student visitors to our classes. It only takes a minute to sign up.​​