The aims of the Charity are:
“to preserve for the benefit of the people of the Parish of Whittington, Shropshire and of the Nation (“the beneficiaries”), the historic, architectural and constructional heritage that may exist in and around the Parish of Whittington, Shropshire (“the area of benefit”) in buildings (including any building as defined in Section 336 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990) of particular beauty or historical, architectural or constructional interest, the restoration, renovation and conservation of gardens, parkland, planned landscapes and estates directly related to such buildings, including but without limiting the generality of the foregoing acquiring, renovating, restoring and utilising for the benefit of the beneficiaries the structure, curtilages, site and environs of Whittington Castle, Whittington , Shropshire and to educate the general public in the geography. history, natural history, architecture and economic and social history of the area of benefit (“the Objects”)”
Company References
A Company Registered in England and Wales and Limited by Guarantee
Company Registration No: 3688770
Registered Charity No: 1075248
A member of the Association of Preservation Trusts www.ukapt.org.uk/
Milestones
August 1998 Community trust conceived
September 1998 Steering group formed between representatives of Whittington Parish Council and Oswestry Borough Council
7 December 1998 Inaugural Public meeting held
24 December 1998 Trust incorporated as a company limited by
25 January 1999 First extraordinary meeting of the trust
16 March 1999 18 month license to manage the Castle and site acquired
10 April 1999 Open day
26 April 1999 Trust formally registered as a charity
4 May 1999 Affiliated with the Association of Preservation Trusts
2 June 1999 Enrolled with Entrust as an environmental body under landfill tax regulations
5 July 1999 Consultant team started work on feasibility study
24 July 1999 Inaugural Medieval Fayre
27-29 July 1999 Consultant team on site
31 August 1999 Draft study report delivered to the Trust
3 September 1999 Open air concert at the Castle
8 September 1999 Trust met to consider draft report
September 1999 Millennium Awards for All grant awarded November 1999 £18,000 funding for urgent repair works secured
8 December 1999 Second Public Meeting
May 2000 First meeting between trustees and castle owners
10 May 2000 First AGM of the Trust with guest speaker, Paul Renfry, Historian and Author 3
Jun 2000 Second Medieval Fayre
Jun 2000 Second opinion sought on valuation J
uly 2000 Urgent repair works completed
1 September 2000 “Open air” concert held in Community centre due to rain
30 September 2000 End of initial license period. License extended to give more time for negotiations
Nov 2000 Second meeting between trustees and castle owners
31 Jan 2001 EGM of Trust to discuss revised terms for acquisition 21 Feb 2001 Third Public Meeting
April 2001 Oswestry Borough Council approve £10,000 grant towards acquisition costs
3 July 2001 Second AGM of the Trust with guest speaker, David Preston of Oswestry Town Council
11 August 2001 Book signing at the Castle by award winning author of romantic fiction Elizabeth Chadwick November 2001 Geophysical survey of Medieval garden
28 January 2002 Countryside Agency award Trust a project preparation grant under the doorstep green scheme
19 March 2002 Council of management of the AHF approve application for £10,000 loan towards acquisition costs
May 2004 HLF bid for approx £950k submitted
30 September 2004 Sponsorship from Richard Burbidge Ltd announced
30 September 2004 Launch of public appeal to raise approx £200k needed to bridge funding gap
November 2005 Repair and restoration work commences
4 May 2007 Castle handed back to the Trust after completion of the building project
14 June 2007 Official re-opening of the Castle by HRH Duke of Gloucester
FUNDING
A Project of this scale and complexity needs significant capital and revenue funding.
Whittington Castle Preservation Trust has been successful in attracting funding from a number of sources.
The funding secured by the trust to date is summarised below:
Start up/Running Costs
Whittington Parish Council £1000
Friends of Whittington Castle £6000
Architectural Heritage Fund Project Administration grant £4000
Feasibility Study
English Heritage £8200
Architectural Heritage Fund £7500 Shropshire Tourism Consortium £2000
Oswestry Borough Council £1200
Shropshire County Council £2000
Total £20,900
Urgent Repair Works
Oswestry Borough Council (Historic Building Fund) £3600
Oswestry Community Action Grant £2000
Shropshire County Council (ERDF) £3500
Dilapidations owed £8300
Whittington Castle Preservation Trust £600
Total £18,000
Misc
1999 – National Lottery (Millennium awards for all) used to purchase IT equipment £3000
2001 – National Lottery (Awards for all) used to purchase grounds maintenance equipment £5000
2002 – Project Preparation Grant from the Countryside Agency under the Doorstep Greens scheme £3122
Acquisition
Oswestry Borough Council £10000
Oswestry Community Tourism Initiative £10000
Preparation of a Conservation Plan
English Heritage £4000
Leader £30000
Shropshire County Council £8000
The Trust continues to pursue funding opportunities to secure the funding required to implement its conservation plan.