Launde Abbey

The Grade II* listed building is predominantly used as a conference and retreat centre by the Church of England dioceses of Leicester and Peterborough.

The original priory was founded before 1125 (in 1119 according to a modern inscription in the reception hall) by Richard Basset and his wife Matilda (née Ridel).

[5] There are numerous memorials of the Simpson family who bought Launde in 1763 and enlarged the house and laid out the plantations.

There is a small, 5-stop pipe organ, built by Henry Speechly in c. 1880, and restored by Roy Young in 1989.

[7] In 2009 the abbey launched a successful £1 million appeal to bring the house up to the standards required by legislation.