I paid a visit to a local park today and went for a wander around the grounds of Wollaton Hall there. I was saddened to see that the once great Camelia House was in such a bad state of disrepair that it is in danger of falling down. Vandals had smashed most pains of glass within it, and the whole thing looked shabby and uncared for. In addition the Hall itself looked tired and old, and the steel fencing around it (together with the overgrown grass verges) added to the abandoned look of the place.
What would the Willoughbys say if they knew...
Fortunately, looking at the City councils website, they have the following statements;
We hope to begin a major programme of restoration works at Wollaton
Hall & Park from September 2005. Work will take place throughout
the Hall and Park and will last around 18 months. We aim to let people
visit the Hall and grounds as much as possible during these planned
works, but some disruption will be inevitable and parts of the Hall and
grounds may be closed at various times to allow works to proceed. The
Hall itself is likely to be closed from October to mid December 2005.
Please telephone to avoid disappointment.
and also;
Wollaton Hall, now owned by Nottingham City Council, is to be
restored as part of a £6.75m conservation project. £1m will come from
the European Regional Development Fund with the rest coming from The
Heritage Lottery Fund and other public and private sources. The plans
are ambitious, but they will restore one of the nation’s most important
landmarks.
Phase one of six in the Council’s long-term conservation plan for Wollaton Hall includes:
- Repairing and opening up the Prospect Room to the public
- Creating access to the half leaded roof so that people can walk around it
- Structural repairs to the Grade 1 listed Camelia House and remedial repairs to the Doric temple in the park grounds
- Opening up more rooms in the hall and more of the park to the public
- A modern interpretation of the exhibitions housed in the hall, with
integrated displays replacing the existing natural history collection
- A fresh programme of guided tours, featuring live actors in period costume
- Better facilities, including a new visitor centre an caf, plus extra toilets
- A fully accessible ramp to the hall, with a new visitor entrance through the servants’ wing at basement level
- A lift to provide access to all levels
I'm glad to see that the local authority is keen to return the area to an attractive state.