Projects at Lyme

After the Second World War, the Legh family entrusted Lyme to the National Trust for the ‘health, education, and delight of local people’. Today, we welcome over 340,000 visitors every year, and we work every day to live up to these principles. These are the primary aims to our work:

Protecting Lyme and our neighbours against climate change

In 2019 torrents of water caused £250,000 worth of damage at Lyme, and swept away much of the formal gardens, before flooding the Swine Ground and Timber Yard areas. With the climate changing, leading to ever more frequent extreme weather events, places like Lyme are at risk and we need to act now for Lyme and nearby places.

Improving access to Lyme

When opening to visitors in 1947, it could never have been anticipated that Lyme would welcome over 340,000 people each year. We need to upgrade our facilities to ensure that you have a great experience when you are with us.

What's happening?

We're embarking on a long-term series of works over the coming years. Here's an overview of what we're planning. We'll be sharing updates on when this will be and what to expect nearer the time.

Update on status of planning application to relocate the visitor car park

We’ve made the decision to withdraw the planning application that we submitted in March 2023 for the proposed relocation of the visitor car park and restoration of a piece of historic parkland.

We know that Lyme is a much-loved place for many and have heard the concerns that have been raised. We’ve been working closely with partners and key stakeholders to address these and demonstrate how the proposals would benefit the long-term future of Lyme and our neighbours. However, in some areas, we have not been able to find a solution. Changes to statutory regulations and the economic climate have also brought a level of uncertainty to the long-term feasibility of our plans. We will now take the time to consider our next steps.

We remain fully committed to improving resilience to climate change and flooding at Lyme and neighbouring communities, promoting green travel, reducing impact on the A6, and ensuring our infrastructure can accommodate the number of people that currently visit us.

Reducing the impact that busy days can have on the A6

We know that the volume of traffic the A6 is high. To help minimise issues caused by traffic coming in and out of Lyme, we are looking at what we can do within our boundaries to relieve some of this pressure. We are currently working up plans for a new admissions hut that will allow us to welcome visitors more efficiently and testing alternative solutions such as pay-on-exit.

We also remain fully committed to encouraging people to arrive at Lyme by foot, bike and public transport. We are working with partners to improve our car-free visit information on the website and offering incentives to people who arrive by bike or public transport.

Supporting green travel

It’s part of our charitable purpose to provide people access to the places we care for however they arrive. We want to work in partnership with others to make it easier to arrive at Lyme on foot, on bike, and by public transport. We’re currently working with partners to incentivise people to visit without a car by offering a 10% discount in the café to those who arrive on bike or by public transport. We'll continue to develop our green travel plans at Lyme.

Looking after nature

As a conservation charity, we’re committed to looking after nature and protecting places for everyone to enjoy. We will continue to put ecology at the heart of what we do, whether improving habitats for great crested newts, protecting ground nesting birds or planting trees. You can read more about how we’re caring for the landscape at Lyme here.

Get in touch

Get in touch to share your views, or ask us anything about the work we do:

• Email us at Lymeprojects@nationaltrust.org.uk
• Write to us at National Trust Lyme, Disley, SK122NR
• Give us a call on  0166 376 1400

Together we can shape future plans to protect this historic place and the animals that call it home, while ensuring this special place can be enjoyed by everyone who loves to visit, for ever.