About the
British Trust for Ornithology

The BTO Headquarters

The headquarters of the BTO is located at The Nunnery, Thetford, Norfolk. Parts of the fabric of the medieval Benedictine Nunnery of St George can still be seen on this site, which was given to the BTO by Patrick and Wendy Rudrum and Jeremy and Carmel Lowndes in 1990. The twelfth-century convent church and a small eighteenth-century manor house were incorporated into the BTO headquarters in an award-winning restoration project funded by a major appeal to our members and supporters. The architect was Derek Rogers Associates.

The generous gift of land at Thetford included 160 acres of riparian habitat in the valleys of the rivers Thet and Little Ouse. There are six small lakes (flooded gravel workings), woodland, scrub and wetland areas and a meadow of botanical interest. This area is now managed as the Nunnery Lakes Nature Reserve. Public access to much of the reserve is available and BTO surveys such as CES and RAS ringing are undertaken and developed by staff and volunteers on the site. Local residents are welcome to get involved with management and maintenance.

Thetford is a medium-sized market town with an extremely rich architectural, ecclesiastical and archaeological heritage. There is a large ruined Norman priory and extensive iron age earthworks which were probably a major commercial and military centre of the pre-Roman Iceni tribe. Thetford is regarded as the capital of the ‘Breckland’, an ecologically unique area of sandy soils and heathland with a distinctive climate, one of Britain’s largest commercial forests and many rare plants. Notable breeding birds include Nightjar, Stone Curlew, Woodlark Long-eared Owl and Goshawk. The North Norfolk Coast, a world-famous birdwatching ‘hot spot’, is less than an hour away. Road access is via the A11 London-Norwich road, connecting with the A14 from the north and midlands. Central Trains operates a regular rail service on the Birmingham-Norwich line. To check a train time, click here. Nearest international airports are Norwich, Cambridge and London Stansted.

To obtain a map from Multimap.com click here

The Chris Mead Memorial Library, located at The Nunnery, is one of England’s largest ornithological collections and a major resource for both members and staff. The library receives review copies of most new bird books as well as the major ecological journals, bird conservation magazines and reports from all over the world. BTO members may visit the library and may borrow books or journals by post, please contact the librarian with enquiries or to make an appointment by emailing . 

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