Shropshire Star

Expansion plans to cut queues at park

A beauty spot has launched plans to improve visitor facilities and introduce green energy to the site.

Published

Bosses at Attingham Park, near Shrewsbury, are planning to extend its catering facilities as well as transforming a cafe into a restaurant and coffee shop in a bid to cope with rising visitor numbers.

Figures show visitor numbers have more than doubled to the park in the last 10 years from 140,000 in 2004-5 to 395,000 last year.

And to embrace the interest in the park, the National Trust has submitted plans to extend what is currently the Carriage House Café and transform it into the Stables Restaurant and coffee shop.

New seating areas will be created in the corner of the Georgian Stable Block which will more than double its current provision. The plans also include a new hot food serving area and a separate coffee shop as well as a purpose-built kitchen.

Manager Mark Agnew said: "This is an ambitious and exciting programme of works which will greatly improve and enhance the Carriage House Café.

"A new coffee shop will offer a swifter service for visitors just wanting a quick drink or snack, whereas the new Stables Restaurant servery will cater for those wanting a more leisurely dining experience. Our proposed new seating area will allow visitors to enjoy a view over the front parkland."

Bosses also hope to install a district biomass system which will remove the property's reliance on oil by providing hot water and heating to the Stable Block and mansion. The 320kw biomass boiler will replace Attingham's current annual consumption of 40,000 litres of oil with wood chip produced from onsite the estate.

The boiler will be housed within a new building specially designed to blend in with the historic surroundings.

Mr Agnew said: "The new biomass system

will make Attingham much more environmentally-friendly, as well as saving more money to spend on future conservation projects."

The scheme is part of a 10-year plan to "transform the visitor experience at Attingham" and will also see the creation of a new visitor reception building.

For more details visit www.nationaltrust.org.uk/attingham-park and click on 'our work'.

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