Part of Dinton Park could close as National Trust plan to lease Phillips House

Upkeep of the Wiltshire landmark would cost the charity too much

Author: Sophie CridlandPublished 16th Sep 2021

The National Trust have plans to lease Wiltshire's Phillips House to a third party.

As the building needs a lot of repairs and maintenance, the charity want to offer it to an organisation or person that can financially afford it's upkeep.

Phillips House is a late Georgian property built on Dinton Park in 1816 and is made of Chilmark stone, a local material also used to build Salisbury Cathedral.

The National Trust property is not open to the public itself but visitors can enjoy Dinton park and admire the house from a distance as there is a boundary in place to stop people coming close to it.

A proposal by the charity is in place to extend that boundary to give those renting the house more privacy.

Most of the park and woodland will be open for the public to enjoy but one third of it will be for the tenants use.

The charity are meeting with representatives from the local communities to go through the proposal in more detail and to hear their views to see if they can accommodate their suggestions.

A Spokesperson from The National Trust told Greatest Hits Radio Salisbury:

"The National Trust has a responsibility to maintain and conserve the places it cares for.

"Since 2015, when the last tenants moved out of Philipps House, the Trust has been exploring how this can best be achieved to offer a viable long-term solution for the property.

"Following a lengthy and thorough review, the charity has decided that the best way forward is leasing the property to a third party, who can care for it in a way that will assure its future and make the financial commitment it requires to repair and restore it.

"The charity recognises how much the parkland is valued by the local community and are committed to maintaining access. However, the park boundary is close to the front of Philipps House and the charity is proposing to adjust the boundary and fence lines in the areas adjacent to the house itself to give a greater degree of privacy.

"The current proposal is for 110 acres of park and adjoining woodland to remain open access for public use and enjoyment, and to make 31 acres available for private use by the tenant."

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