News

....that it will be taking over the imposing Hestercombe House, the centre-piece of the estate, under licence in the early summer!

Read full Press Release:

14/02/12

Hestercombe House: Re-United with Gardens At Last.

Following extensive discussions with Somerset County Council the Hestercombe Gardens Trust is delighted to reveal that it will be taking over the imposing Hestercombe House, the centre piece of the estate, under licence in the early summer and plans are afoot to open it to the public and turn it into a national Centre for Landscape Studies.

Whilst the surrounding gardens and land had been secured for the Trust through a system of long term tenancies from a range of landowners the house has remained under the direct ownership of the Council where it has been used as office space and as the  HQ for  Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service. Securing the house is a pivotal moment in the history of Hestercombe, says as Chief Executive Philip White:

‘Being able to re-unite Hestercombe House with its historic landscape for the first time in sixty years, is a hugely exciting prospect and we are delighted that Somerset County Council has been able to offer us this exciting arrangement which will enable us to take over the house under licence in the early summer.  It will consolidate and reinforce Hestercombe nationally and internationally particularly with the  proposed Centre for Landscape Studies creating  a world class centre of excellence.’

Once funding is secured, the Trust  hopes to re-furbish and re-roof  the house and open it (free to Somerset residents for the first two years) to showcase it’s Georgian, Victorian and Edwardian history.  It also plans to develop  a national Centre for Landscape Studies hosting seminars, conferences, providing a  research resource for the public, housing   the Hestercombe archive  and an archive for  thousands of conservation management plans currently held by organisations such as the Heritage Lottery Fund and Natural England. The council are pleased to have orchestrated  the handover of the house as Cllr Huxtable explains:

“This is great news for the council, great news for Somerset residents and great news for the Trust.  The building needs improving and investment – money we just do not have in these tight financial times. The Trust has a bold plan to  carry out improvements. It will be great to see part of our Somerset heritage fully restored and thriving once again. We wish success to all concerned with Hestercombe’s future.”

Just as the restored gardens at Hestercombe exhibit three periods of gardening history; the eighteenth century landscape garden, the nineteenth century Victorian shrubbery and terrace and the twentieth century formal Edwardian garden, so indeed does the house and through the proposed acquisition  both house and garden will be reunited each reflecting the others remarkable development over time.

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For further information please contact Rebecca Pow on 07900 685 303  rebecca@powproductions.tv or Hestercombe   01823 413923

The Hestercombe Gardens Trust is a charity responsible for the restoration and upkeep of Hestercombe Gardens.

The Hestercombe Site is a unique combination of three gardens that cover three centuries of horticultural history and design:
-the famous Edwardian formal garden, designed by architect Sir Edwin Lutyens  and planted by Gertrude Jekyll.
-the Victorian Shrubbery and Terrace originally laid out by the 1st Viscount Portman in 1878
-the eighteenth century landscape garden designed by Coplestone Warre Bampfylde between 1750 and 1791.

South West Tourism Excellence Awards Gold Award 2010/11

The Hestercombe Gardens Trust, Hestercombe Gardens, Cheddon Fitzpaine, Taunton, Somerset, TA2  8LG  01823 413923. www.hestercombe.com