Interested in poetry, nature writing and Edward Thomas? Join our volunteer team at the Edward Thomas Centre!
We are looking for enthusiastic and friendly volunteers to help in Petersfield Museum and Art Gallery and the Edward Thomas Fellowship's mission to bring the story and Edward Thomas Collection to wider audiences.
If you enjoy welcoming visitors, talking about collection items, learning about local history or have an interest in literature and poetry, we are looking for new volunteers to join our team. No need to be a poetry expert—just a passion for meeting and engaging people.
Information Day
Join us for our Information Day on Tuesday 4 March from 1:00pm-4:00pm at the Edward Thomas Centre to find out more.
Meet Jeremy Mitchell (Chair of the Edward Thomas Fellowship) and some of our current volunteers for a friendly chat about our plans and how you can help—no pressure, no commitment, just a chance to find out more!
Can’t make it? You can always find out more by popping into the Edward Thomas Centre during our current hours (Wednesdays & Thursdays, 10 am – 3.30 pm) to chat with a volunteer.
About the Edward Thomas Centre
The Edward Thomas Centre is home to a wide collection of books, art, artefacts and other items reflecting the life and continuing influence of poet, writer and literary critic Edward Thomas.
The Edward Thomas Centre is home to the Tim Wilton-Steer Collection of works by and about the poet Edward Thomas (1878-1917). Attracted by the landscape and the South Downs, Thomas and his family lived in Steep, near Petersfield for ten years, from 1906. Known during his lifetime as a critic, essayist and writer of books about the countryside, Thomas moved towards writing his own poetry in late 1914, initially publishing under the name Edward Eastaway. Before he saw his poetry in print under his own name, he was killed at the Battle of Arras on Easter Monday 1917. Since then, Thomas’s reputation as a poet has increased greatly and his posthumous influence on the development of English verse has been widely recognised.
In addition to the extensive library of poetry and prose, there is an eclectic display of work from artists inspired by Thomas's work - including wood and lino-cuts, calligraphy, sketch work and paintings, particularly of the Memorial Stone on the Shoulder of Mutton Hill between Steep and Froxfield.