For over 20 years the Mills Section of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings has organised National Mills Weekend (formerly "National Mills Day"), a celebration of Britain's milling heritage.

Wind and water are sustainable power sources, used for hundreds of years in Britain in the production of natural food.

There are currently more than 100 working mills capable of producing natural, stoneground flour and many of these will be open to the public during National Mills Weekend. In addition, over the weekend, a further 300 mills throughout the country will be welcoming visitors.

SPAB's Windmill Committee was formed in 1931 in response to an alarming decline in the numbers of the country's windmills. Later it included watermills within its interests, and it "encouraged the art of country milling". Still active today the SPAB is the only national amenity society dedicated to the protection of our milling heritage.

Some working mills are more than 300 years old yet still efficiently doing the job in the 21st century that they were built and designed for.

National Mills Weekend 2012 will be held on
Saturday 12th & Sunday 13th May.

Some mills work as commercial businesses, while others are run by enthusiastic volunteers. Fifty years ago, the windmills and watermills of this country were thought to be in terminal decline, but now there has been a renaissance in these wonderful reminders of our past.

In Sussex, windmills and watermills have not only produced meal flour, but have made gunpowder as those at Battle, or pumped water like the Coultershaw Beam Pump that once pumped water into Petworth. Many watermills in Sussex produced a variety of products such as linseed oil, cattle cake, oil dressed leather and drove fulling stocks for fulling wool. Today in Sussex, most of those that have survived are those that produced meal flour.

	Paul Cutts, a landscape painter based in Steyning specialising in architectural subjects. has set out to paint every windmill in Sussex. So far he has visited West Blatchington, High Salvington, Rottingdean, Chailey, Shipley, Oldland and Nutley. He's beginning to fall in love with these rather enigmatic buildings, which seem to be possessed of a strange living quality that is hard to explain.

Morris dancers at Windmill Hill Windmill   Open Day at Nutley Windmill : Photo by Nick Linazasoro

Details of Sussex Mills that were open to visitors on National Mills Weekend 2011 are listed below. Mill owners are invited to contact us with details of their mill.
MILL	DAY	OPENING TIMES	SPECIAL EVENTS COMMENTS
Halnaker Windmill	SAT	All Day
Lurgashall Watermill	SAT	10 am to 6 pm	Entry via Weald & Downland Museum
Michelham Priory Watermill	SAT	2 pm to 5 pm
Nutley Windmill	SAT	2.30 pm to 5 pm
Stone Cross Windmill	SAT	10 am to 4 pm
Windmill Hill Windmill	SAT	2.30 pm to 5 pm	Teas, plants, tombola and other attractions
Halnaker Windmill	SUN	All Day
High Salvington Windmill	SUN	2.30 pm to 5 pm	Worthing Amateur Radio Club (Callsign GB0HSM) Refreshments Guided tours Adults £1, Children Free
Ifield Watermill	SUN	2.30 pm to 5 pm
Lurgashall Watermill	SUN	10 am to 6 pm	Entry via Weald & Downland Museum
Michelham Priory Watermill	SUN	2 pm to 5 pm
Nutley Windmill	SUN	2 pm to 5 pm	Crowborough Amateur Radio Society
Polegate Windmill	SUN	11 am to 5 pm	Barbeque on the mill plat at 12 noon Long Man Morris Men perform at 1.30 pm Amateur Radio Club contact with other mills
Stone Cross Windmill	SUN	10 am to 4 pm
West Blatchington Windmill	SUN	11 am to 5 pm	Radio operators 2nd hand bookstall Homemade cakes & refreshments Tours of the mill Selection of classic cars Half-size steam engine in steam Several stationary actions at work Other attractions !
Windmill Hill Windmill	SUN	2 pm to 5 pm	Teas, plants, tombola and other attractions

The website of G4CDD Denby Dale Radio Club has details of Amateur Radio Stations broadcasting from Mills on National Mills weekend. Click here for a list of mills participating in Holland.

Is your Sussex Mill listed here ?

If not . . . . please click here

For further information, please visit the SPAB Mills Section website.