At the core of this major restoration project has been the creation of a comprehensive education and interpretation centre using the restored house as its focus as well as renovating existing rooms. After opening, Walpole’s wonderful garden will be accessible for the local community and visitors to enjoy throughout the year. The vision has been to turn this important heritage property into a place where education and enjoyment are intrinsic to its purpose. It will be an innovative and community-serving place providing enjoyment for audiences - locally, nationally and internationally. Close links are being developed with the Walpole Library at Farmington, part of Yale University, USA, where many of Walpole’s papers and collections are kept. St Mary’s University College, the former lease-holder, is planning a number of academic courses in collaboration with the Trust using Walpole’s Villa as the focal point.

The design team, led by the conservation architects, Inskip and Jenkins, has undertaken very extensive historical research throughout the project.  Expert paint analysis has been carried out with exciting results: in the Front Hall Walpole’s original trompe l’oeil designs have been discovered under later accretions of paint and in several other rooms 18^th century colours and gilding are being revealed on the chimney pieces.  Thorough wall-paper analysis has also been undertaken, with several 18^th and 19^th century papers having been discovered already in cupboards left undisturbed while the surrounding room were re-decorated. 

The house is scheduled to re-open in early October 2010 and will remain open until Christmas 2010.  The house will be closed in the New Year until April for conservation and cleaning work to be undertaken, but will then remain open for the season from April - October 2011.

When the house re-opens, Twickenham will be home to an exceptional property of local, national and international importance. The house will provide a dynamic education and interpretation centre, and a glorious garden, all of which may be enjoyed by a wide range of audiences and will become a vital and contributing part of the local community.

The complete cost for the planning and restoration is £8.9 million. The Heritage Lottery Fund has made a £4.9m grant and a large proportion of the remaining funding has been raised from generous donors.