Alistair Hardaker
Image: Dover Castle (English Heritage)
The charitable trust’s public appeal is hoped to cover some of the £4.2m conservation costs associated with its free-to-enter sites
The chief executive of English Heritage has warned of ‘rocketing’ conservation costs at its more than 300 free-to-enter sites, as the organisation launches a public appeal.
Interim chief executive, Geoff Parkin, was appointed earlier this year after its former chief executive Nick Merriman stepped down.
Parkin announced the launch of English Heritage’s ‘Your Places’ appeal in an Daily Mail op-ed.
The appeal is hoped to cover some of the £4.2m cost of operating the more than 300 free-to-enter sites it cares for.
“Each year, on behalf of the nation, English Heritage spends millions on maintaining the free sites in our care,” wrote Parkin, “But it is no longer enough.”
“Conservation costs are rocketing and climate change is accelerating the issues faced by our heritage – creating huge challenges for charities, seeking to protect it like us.
“It is for this reason that, this week, English Heritage is launching a public appeal to raise funds in support of our vital conservation work and to secure the future of this nation’s free heritage sites.”
English Heritage said a donation of £35 could help pay for an hour of a stonemason’s time, £60 could help maintain a historic landscape through gardening, and, and a donation of £80 could help repair a section of medieval roof.
The charitable trust relies on income from admission, membership, trading, fundraising, and grants. The government provided £80m in yearly subsidies until 2023 to cover maintenance backlogs. The charitable trust reported record numbers of families visiting their sites in 2023, growing 50% over the past decade.
