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Big Heritage Lottery grant
for restoration of Catton Park
Funding for the
restoration of the historic Catton Park on the outskirts of Norwich has
been approved by the
Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) it was announced last night.
Over £650,000 has been
allocated to restore and maintain Catton Park, listed Grade 2*
on the English Heritage
Register of Parks of Special Historic Interest. There is currently
limited public access to
the park, at the discretion of the landowner. Now the grant will
be used to open Catton
Park to more people for the first time.
Robyn Llewellyn, HLF’s
Manager in the East of England comments; ‘This is a great
opportunity to open up a
beautiful rural area for everyone in and around Norwich to
explore and enjoy. The
benefits for the local community are obvious, but the scheme
will also help the long
term conservation of this wonderful landscape.’
Andrew Buxton, whose
family has owned most of the Park for around 150 years,
welcomed the news. He
said: “The grant means a new era has dawned for
Catton Park. I hope the
local community will soon enjoy it as much as my family
has done in the past”.
The grant will enable the
Catton Park Trust to lease land from the owners for a minimum
of 30 years, fund
appropriate renovations and employ a park warden.
Defra is also providing
substantial support for the project, contributing over £130,000
through a 10 year
Countryside Stewardship Scheme.
This is fantastic news
and means Catton Park can be restored and protected as a
natural gem for free
public access on the outskirts of Norwich for the benefit of local
people in an
otherwise urban area”, said Ken Leggett, secretary of the Catton Park
Trust and Broadland
District Councillor.
Plans for the 28 hectare
site include returning arable land to grassland, restoring the
natural woodland
boundaries and creating nature and sculpture trails. There will be also
be a picnic and dog free
area, and park seating will be installed.
A park warden will be
appointed to care for the Park and promote activities such as
riding for the disabled,
orienteering for young people and guided walks. Local schools
are keen to use the Park
for outdoor learning supported by information leaflets on the
Park habitat and history.
Yesterday’s news is a
major step forward in plans for the Park which began over 20
years ago and have seen
the active involvement of all the local authorities, the land
owners and many local
residents.
Other local authorities
were quick to welcome the Heritage Lottery Fund’s decision.
Linda Brighton, Head of
Environmental Management at Norwich City Council said:
“Catton Park will be of
immense value for Norwich, particularly for this side of the City
which includes the areas
of Mile Cross and Catton Grove. We have been involved in
providing professional
advice and a small amount of funding for the bid so we are
delighted with the news.
A spokesperson from
Broadland District Council said: "Our officers have been involved
from the beginning and
advised on conservation issues such as the management of
some preserved trees and
other technical aspects. Broadland Council is also
contributing £10,000 per
annum for ten years for this park. Residents in Broadland and
Norwich and visitors will
be able to enjoy this space hopefully for many years to come”.
Catton Park was the first
paid for commission by eighteenth century landscape designer
Humphry Repton. He also
designed other parks in Norfolk, including the National Trust
property at Sheringham
Park, and went on to work on Regent’s Park and lay out Russell
Square in London.
Work is due to begin on
restoring the Park in February next year. “There is a lot of
work to be done. Our
first task is to start on woodland management but we hope to
welcome our first
official visitors to the park in June 2007” said Mr Leggett.
-ends-
For further information and interviews please contact Mr
Ken Leggett on 01603 408823
or email
ken.leggett@btinternet.com
Images of Catton Park can be viewed at
www.oldcatton.com and
www.cattonpark.com
For further information on the Heritage Lottery Fund
please contact Alex Gaskell
on 020 7591 6047 or email
agaskell@hlf.org.uk.
The Heritage lottery Fund (HLF) enables communities
to celebrate, look after
and learn more about our diverse heritage. From
our great museums and
historic buildings to local parks and beauty spots
or recording and celebrating
traditions, customs and history, HLF grants open up
our nation’s heritage for
everyone to enjoy. We have supported more than
1,400 projects in the East
of England, allocating over £200 million during the
past decade.
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