Related Organisations
There are a suprising number of organisations that ensure Avebury, Stonehenge abd the related ancient landscape, remains as wonderful as it is today
The National Trust
Stone circles and henge
Avebury Henge dates from around 4,600 years ago. The bank and ditch are almost a mile in circumference, and the ditch was originally around nine metres deep. The banks were built up from chalk, dug from the ditch using stone and bone tools, and both would have been bright white when new.
The outer stone circle is the largest prehistoric circle of standing stones in the world and there are the remains of two other smaller stone circles within it.
The stones are huge with the largest weighing at least 100 tonnes, making it the heaviest in Britain. The stones are a locally sourced hard grey sandstone known as sarsen. You can walk amongst all the stones and along the henge bank
Who are UNESCO
The World Heritage List includes 1248 properties forming part of the cultural and natural heritage which the World Heritage Committee considers as having outstanding universal value.
These include 972 cultural, 235 natural and 41 mixed properties in 170 States Parties. As of October 2024, 196 States Parties have ratified the World Heritage Convention.
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The Wiltshire Museum Devizes
Avebury Parish Council
Avebury Parish Council is the first tier of local government and often the first place people turn when they have a question or concern. We work to give the community a voice, improve everyday life, and support the things that make our parish special.
Avebury Parish Council is within the West Selkley Division of Wiltshire Council. The parliamentary constituency is Devizes. Wiltshire Council runs formal Area Boards which deal with community issues such as traffic, road repairs, affordable housing and litter. Avebury Parish is within the Marlborough Area Board.
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English Heritage
Avebury is part of an extraordinary set of Neolithic and Bronze Age ceremonial sites that seemingly formed a vast sacred landscape. They include West Kennet Avenue, West Kennet Long Barrow, The Sanctuary, Windmill Hill, and the mysterious Silbury Hill. Many can be reached on foot from the village. The Alexander Keiller Museum also displays many notable finds from the Avebury monuments. Together with Stonehenge, Avebury and its surroundings are a World Heritage Site, co-owned by English heritage with The National Trust
Council For British Archaeology
Avebury Society is affiliated to The Council for British Archaeology (CBA). This is a UK wide educational charity that helps champion and promote participation in archaeology. Avebury has been vexing researchers since its discovery as an object of antiquarian enquiry in the mid 17th century. However, despite nearly 400 years of study, theres still much to learn. The last decade has seen a burst of new studies at the site; investigations that are not only challenging and unsettling accepted stories, but also shedding remarkable new light on the emergence and history of this monumental landscape.
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Winter lecture 12th March 2026 - discover new understandings of the Neolithic monument of Avebury with Professors Mark Gillings and Joshua Pollard.
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Avebury as aWorld Hertiage Site
Read the World Heritage Site Management Plan to find out more about the management of the Stonehenge and Avebury World Heritage Site.
Learn about the Research Framework that looks after this ancient area here
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Wessex Archaeology has had a long history of work at both Stonehenge and Avebury, and played a leading role in their research, management and investigation -
Wessex Archaeology
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ASHARG
The Avebury and Stonehenge Archaeological and Historical Research Group (ASAHRG) as a group emerged from the Avebury Archaeological and Historical Research Group. ASAHRG is made up of people involved in archaeological and historical research in the Stonehenge and Avebury WHS and surrounding area. A group of professional curators, academics and freelance researchers meet to knowledge exchange, encouraging, coordinating and disseminating research in the WHS.
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