Worth Abbey

Worth Abbey stands in the quiet countryside near Turners Hill village in West Sussex. Founded in 1933 by seventeen monks from Downside Abbey, it began as a small priory on land once called Paddockhurst. The monks chose the name Worth after the parish where the abbey stood. In 1965 it became an independent abbey with its first abbot, Victor Farwell. Today the community numbers twenty-one monks who follow the Rule of St Benedict. The abbey is known for its modern church designed by Francis Pollen and completed in 1974. The circular church with its central stone altar reflected changes after the Second Vatican Council. In 2011 Thomas Heatherwick led a renovation that added new lighting, a sound system and dark walnut pews. The abbey also gained fame through television series such as The Monastery and The Big Silence. Visitors find a Grade II listed church open to the public, along with a Quiet Garden on the grounds. The abbey church seats around nine hundred and remains a place for communal prayer. Retreat programmes run daily, at weekends and for longer periods through the Open Cloister. The monks welcome guests who wish to share in their tradition of prayer and hospitality.