Grade I-listed stately home sold
Grade I-listed Wentworth Woodhouse, formerly one of the largest privately-owned stately homes in Europe, has been sold.
A grant of £3.5m from the National Heritage Memorial Fund has provided the Wentworth Woodhouse Preservation Trust with the” final piece of the financial jigsaw” needed to purchase the property.
WWPT has now bought the house, its outstanding collection of classical statuary and the surrounding grounds of 83 acres for a total of £7m.
The house, near Rotherham in South Yorkshire was built between 1725 and 1750 by the Marquesses of Rockingham.
The main house has more than 200 rooms, and the Chancellor of the Exchequer allocated £7.6m for repairs in his Autumn Statement in 2016, enabling work to start this year.
In 2013, repairs were predicted to cost £42m.
The Chair of Wentworth Preservation Trust (WWPT), local businesswoman Julie Kenny said: “This is the culmination of five years very hard work and has been made possible by the support of many different charities, government bodies and individuals, including the Chancellor of the Exchequer. It is great news for the people of Rotherham and for everyone who cares about historic buildings.”
Chief executive of NHMP Ros Kerslake said “Wentworth Woodhouse is an incredibly important piece of our national heritage, which is why trustees of the National Heritage Memorial Fund agreed £3.5m funding that has now helped secure its future for the nation.
“As well as ensuring the house and grounds are open to the public, the Trust’s ambitious plans will create jobs, apprenticeships, training and volunteering opportunities for many years to come.”
A statement from the Newbold family on the sale of Wentworth Woodhouse said: “Wentworth Woodhouse has been an important part of our lives for nearly two decades and although there is some sadness in having to say goodbye, our greatest wish, which was always to see that its future was secure, has at last been fulfilled.
“We would like to publically express our thanks to all the staff and volunteers who have worked so hard and with such dedication to help us save the house over the years.”
Crispin Holborow of Savills said: “It has been a privilege to have been involved with the sale of what is widely regarded as one of the most magnificent houses in England. It was always the wish of our clients’, the Newbold family, that the house should end up in safe hands and I am delighted this is now the case.
“We hope that shortly, the finest Georgian interiors in the country will be preserved for future generations to enjoy.
“The Newbold family bought the house in 1999, as a retirement project that their father Clifford, a renowned architect, could enjoy. Sadly he died last year but as the old Greek proverb says ‘a society grows when old men plant trees in whose shade they know they will never sit’.”
