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05
Aug
Studley Royal entrance and tearoom to close for 12 months as £5.8 million project begins
The Studley Royal tearoom and the nearby entrance between the deer park and water garden will close to visitors for a year from Monday, September 7.
The closures will allow the National Trust to begin work on its £5.8 million Studley Revealed project at the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal, near Ripon.
The trust announced the closures today (August 5) and said it has appointed Ripley-based construction firm The HACS Group as principal contractor. Heritage architects Feilden Fowles and landscape architects RankinFraser are also part of the project team.
Justin Scully (right) and Eddie Ashworth. Pic: Tom Saunderson, The HACS Group
The main visitor routes through the estate and entry through the visitor centre and west gate are unaffected. Studley car park will remain open for deer park visitors.
Justin Scully, general manager of National Trust Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal, said:
Studley Revealed represents a once-in-a-generation investment in the future of this remarkable world heritage site. The project will help us better care for the landscape and create visitor facilities that are worthy of a world heritage site for the millions of people who will continue to enjoy this special place in years to come.
How the tearoom's new exterior canopy and seating area will look. Credit: NT/Fielden Fowles
The project will increase the size of the tearoom, provide better disabled facilities, restore sightlines and tell visitors the story of the Georgian water garden through interpretation boards.
But it has attracted criticism because tearoom visitors will have to pay to access the site once work is complete.
The trust previously put the cost of the scheme at £4.6 million. Asked why it had increased by £1.2 million, a spokesperson said
As the project has developed, costs have been reviewed and updated to reflect current market conditions, including increases in the price of materials and construction. The revised figure reflects the latest projected build costs. The National Trust will cover the full cost of the project through a combination of its own commercial income, reserves and legacy funding.
An illustration of the how the new entrance to the building from the water gardens - Studley Revelaed - credit Feilden Fowles
The current entrance
A large temporary marquee is now planned to be installed near the main visitor entrance in October to provide extra seating capacity for the visitor centre restaurant over winter, to compensate for the closure of the tearoom.
More than 430,000 people visit the world heritage site each year to explore the ruins of the 12th-century Fountains Abbey and the water garden at Studley Royal, renowned for its ornamental lakes, follies, statues and vistas.
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