About City Discovery Centre

City Discovery Centre Ltd is a charitable company limited by guarantee and was set up in July 1987. It is governed by a memorandum and articles of association which were last amended on 15 January 1998. The present organisation represents an amalgamation of two earlier bodies: the Milton Keynes Urban Studies Centre (focussed upon urban environmental education, including history and geography) and the Bradwell Abbey Field Centre Trust (focussed upon history, archaeology and the natural environment).

City Discovery Centre's objective is:

To promote a greater appreciation and understanding of the historical, natural and built environments of Milton Keynes.

Our location

Since 1992, City Discovery Centre has been based at the ancient site of Bradwell Abbey in Milton Keynes. Bradwell Abbey is the site and remains of a medieval Benedictine Priory and is a Scheduled Ancient Monument (no.19062) and a Community Related Asset. The latter designation reflects an understanding that the management of the site will be on a not-for-profit basis.

Bradwell Abbey is also a non-statutory Biological Notification Site and a proposed Regionally Important Geological and Geomorphological Site. The former is in respect of evidence indicating an extant colony of Great Crested Newts and Brown Long eared bats (Plecotus auritus).

In 1997, CDC was given a 25-year lease on the 5 hectare site which is owned by the Milton Keynes Council.

Our Activities

In pursuit of its charitable objectives, CDC undertakes activities in four main areas:

1) educational programmes and activities to support all levels of learning in urban studies and the sustainable city.

2) educational programmes and activities to support learning in heritage studies

3) maintenance of an archive and image library which deals the with the development of Milton Keynes as a City

4) in collaboration with the Milton Keynes Council (the site owners) we manage and maintain the Bradwell Abbey site for the benefit of the Milton Keynes community (this function includes providing meeting and administrative space for community groups ).