After four years, a budget of nearly six million pounds, thanks to grants from the Heritage Lottery Fund and the Wales European Funding Office, Dinefwr Park and Castle is preparing to celebrate an important milestone in its history.
The Historic Landscape Restoration Project, which has transformed the park and many of its buildings, has come to an end and is being celebrated in style with a special open day on Friday June 27. The occasion will give the team at Dinefwr a chance to reveal all their achievements to date, and announce some of their plans for future improvements.
Paul Faulkner, Property and Project Manager at Dinefwr Park and Castle, explains:
'We’re so proud of what we’ve achieved so far, the changes have been remarkable in a relatively short period of time, but we don’t want to stand still. The success of this project has given us many more ambitions for this very special place and we’d like to invite anyone who shares our vision for the future to join us on the next stage of the journey.'
The major project has enabled the impressive property at the centre of the park, Newton House, to be completely restored and transformed back to its Edwardian heyday. The house was reopened to the public nearly two years ago, when the first phase of the project was completed. In that time, visitor numbers have almost doubled, with the new tearoom, shop and children’s play area proving popular draws. Earlier this year, a major permanent exhibition was opened on the first floor of the house, telling the story of the part Dinefwr has played in Welsh history. Outside, the parkland has received similar care and attention. Six thousand new oak trees and oak cleft fencing have helped to protect its traditional landscaped appearance and the prestigious designation of the park as a National Nature Reserve last year will enable more conservation work protecting rare species, ancient woodland and the historic landscape itself.
It has all been possible thanks to generous funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund and the European Objective One programme, managed by the Welsh Assembly, totalling some £5.85 million to date.
The open day on 27 June was a celebration of all these achievements, with a keynote speech being delivered by the Welsh Assembly Minister for Heritage Rhodri Glyn Thomas AM and free entry to all. Staff and volunteers will gave guided tours to show all the work carried out to date, explain how the park is being looked after and reveal some of the plans for the future.
'We really want people to realise that Dinefwr is still giving up a lot of its secrets, there’s an archaeological dig in progress at the moment, trying to locate the exact location of two medieval towns within the park’s boundaries, so we feel that it’s essential that we don’t rest on our laurels. We’re delighted with the response we’ve had from the public so far and expect our visitor numbers to reach fifty thousand this year, an amazing achievement for all who’ve been involved with the project.'
Peter Faulkner, Property and Project Manager at Dinefwr Park and Castle
Work is still ongoing within the park. Home Farm, the large eighteenth century farmhouse which was moved from its original position next to Newton House on the recommendations of the famous landscape designer ‘Capability’ Brown, is being refurbished and will be available to rent as an impressive holiday property from later this year. The farm’s outbuildings are also being restored, including the large central farmyard. When removing concrete from the yard, contractors recently discovered 18th century cobblestones, believed to cover the entire yard, which would make it an important and historic feature.
There are even plans to develop a centre for Welsh Arts and Music, possibly within the Inner Courtyard running to the rear of Newton House, underlining the strong links between Dinefwr and Welsh cultural heritage. Its former owner Lord Rees was involved in starting the very first Eisteddfod in Wales and more recently, Lord Dynevor was part of the movement to revive the event in the nineteenth century. More funding, more volunteers and more visitors are needed to make that a possibility but ambitions are running high at Dinefwr, inspired by recent success. One project may have come to an end, but another chapter in Dinefwr’s rich and remarkable history is just beginning.
|
