About & Join

As a member of the Friends, you will enjoy the following:

• Our quarterly newsletter
• Private views of gallery exhibitions, with special introductory talks
• Lectures at the gallery by leading authorities on Morris and related topics
• Visits to houses, and other historic buildings connected with or decorated by Morris and his associates
• Social events including annual parties at Christmas and in celebration of Morris’s birthday

Membership fees

• Adult single (over 18) within UK: £8.00, overseas: £12.00
• Family membership (2 people at the same address or within UK: £12.00. Parents + any children under 18 overseas: £16.00)
• Youth membership (14-17) UK only: £2.00
• Concessionary membership within UK: £4.00, (over 60 and full-time student) overseas: £8.00
• Corporate membership within UK: £25.00 minimum overseas: £30.00 minimum
• Voluntary additional donations are always welcomed.

To become a member please download and print this PDF application form or send an email to Helen Dunstan Smith.

Background

The Friends group was set up in 1987 against the backdrop of a threat to close the William Morris Gallery in Walthamstow.

That was the year in which the Government ordered local authorities to reduce expenditure and the London Borough of Waltham Forest  proposed shutting the gallery to make a twenty per cent cut in the libraries and arts budget.

Local residents and admirers of Morris and the Arts & Crafts movement in Britain and throughout the world protested through the international media.  The council backed down but insisted on a reduced budget.

The Friends sprang again into the global spotlight in 2007 when they campaigned  to save the gallery in the face of renewed local authority cuts to the service.

In the years between, and since the 2007 battle, the Friends have not been idle. As a registered charity, we have publicised the gallery and raised over £100,000 towards its collection purchase and display funds. 

At a time of reduced public spending in the arts, the contribution of the Friends is invaluable.  By becoming a member you will be helping to maintain the high standards of this unique museum.