ELVASTON CASTLE

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So much has been said regarding Elvaston Castle externally, yet few people seem to be addressing the interior. Of paramount importance is to wrest the building from the itching grasp of Highgate Sanctuary and return it with a more sensible financial strategy to what the aim was in the beginning. The house is basically sound. We just need people to put their backs behind the cause, raise the funds and get on with the job. I speak as someone who knew the house as a warm, alive and delightful home for two years. We who love the castle, albeit a misnomer, have studied its history, slept in its confines, swept with pride down its majestic white marble stairway, teased our pals hiding between double doors of its bedrooms.

We annoyed the matron by dressing up the nude statues and dangling "unmentionables" from the crystal chandeliers, sunbathed in the gardens and high on the stone seat of the "ruins" as we gazed in wonder at this gracious pile beyond the lake. We knew that no way could it be transformed into a modernistic hideaway for sophisticates demanding such pandering as hotels dish out, even on a much smaller scale than envisaged by these perpetrators masquerading under the fancy name of Sanctuary.

We were at first hoodwinked by promises of conservation which now prove to be a mockery as plans to make gross alterations internally come to light which, by their very nature, are bound to alter the whole concept of Elvaston. Also, what has happened regarding "change of use" permission? In this case, the change of use is being opposed by thousands of people who paid for Elvaston in the first place. These are basic rights that should be addressed. Bee Wickens

Derbyshire County Council leader John Williams said, "We will not privatise anything but keep all services in house because it's the best value." He also said that the council has also changed its philosophy from being "Proud of Derbyshire", to "improving life for local people". I wonder how he reconciles these statements with the council's intention to dispose of Elvaston Castle Country Park? The council could still improve life for local people by handing over the running of the estate to a not-for-profit trust.

Councillor Annette Noskwith also stated there was not enough money for improvements needed at the castle. This is not strictly true. A report by Derbyshire County Council Elvaston Castle Country Park Working Party on July 8, 2002, said: "Heritage Lottery Fund has indicated that there is the possibility of grant aid towards elements of the restoration of the castle and other buildings". Why is this grant aid not being vigorously pursued by the council?

Councillor Bob Janes stated in November 2004 that, "Currently, security and building expenditure in the order of £150,000 per annum is being expended. The castle is not being allowed to fall into disrepair." If this is true, why is there a large hole where part of the roof of the Grade II listed former Working Farm Museum has collapsed; why are roof tiles being lifted off the roof of the (grade II listed) stable-block by ivy; and why allow the disgraceful damage to the ceiling and wall of Lady Harrington's bedroom, caused by rainwater?

In one statement the castle requires £3m worth of repairs, in another, £150,000 a year is being spent on security and maintenance. In the same fashion, the county council claims that it costs £500,000 a year to run the place and it can no longer afford to do so. If the county council showed some proper commitment to Elvaston Castle Country Park, taking as an example Normanby Hall Country Park, a site of similar size and historical origins, run so successfully by North Lincolnshire Council, there would be no problems with the finances and running of Elvaston Castle and it could take pride of place where it belongs, as one of the top tourist attractions in Derbyshire. Graham Mansey, Secretary, Friends of Elvaston

Campaigners fighting to stop the development of Elvaston Castle and country park lodged an official complaint about Derbyshire County Council. Alexander Devlin, chairman of the Friends of Elvaston action group, complained to the Local Government Ombudsman, accusing the county council of failing to properly consult the public about the future of the stately home and gardens, and of mismanagement. If it finds in Mr Devlin's favour, solutions that could be suggested include forcing the authority to carry out renewed consultation.

Mr Devlin said, "We've tried to get answers ourselves, but the county council has been determined to dispose of the park and has failed to take on board anything that people in the community have tried to put forward. We had no alternative but to seek help from the ombudsman." Mr Devlin's submission accuses the council of a number of failings including not holding proper consultation. But the Friends of Elvaston group and other protesters claimed the council ignored the strength of public opinion, including a petition containing 60,000 signatures collected by the Elvaston Castle Petition group.

The public was consulted in 2000. A questionnaire was published in the authority's Insight newspaper, and the council received 2,100 replies, from 250,000 copies. Seventy eight per cent of people said they did not agree "the estate should be leased or sold to release substantial income to be spent on key county council services". Ninety eight per cent said "there should continue to be open access to the estate parkland". The other results showed that 89% agreed that "the main castle building should be restored"; 59% agreed that private investment "should be sought to help secure the estate's long-term future and reduce the cost to taxpayers".

The county council said that people would have an opportunity to give their views on the development as part of the planning application process and through the bid for Heritage Lottery funding. Planning applications are expected to be submitted to South Derbyshire District Council this summer. The county council, in conjunction with Highgate, is currently preparing an application to the Heritage Lottery Fund for £10m to restore the 185-acre section of the 325-acre site which is classified as the "historic core gardens".

The county council has said that this section would remain open to the public, although people could be charged. Assistant ombudsman Neil Hobbs said during an investigation the council would be asked for detailed comments. If it was decided that there had been maladministration, actions to remedy the situation would be suggested. But if a judgment could not be made, a more formal examination of documents would be carried out. A county council spokeswoman said, "We're aware that a complaint has been lodged with the ombudsman and we're dealing with it accordingly." (Source: Derby Evening Telegraph)

Well, well, well! Do we really know the truth about Elvaston Castle Country Park? Where are the secret cameras or the hidden turnstiles that recorded 628,257 people visiting in 2004? And, if some 630,000 people paid parking charges of 80p and £1.40 to visit the park last year, why was the park's income only £166,196? It would appear that someone has not done their arithmetic very well. Either that, or else there is the biggest black hole in Derbyshire swallowing up money and it is situated somewhere at the top of a hill in Matlock.

Do they really express the feelings that were very obvious at a parish council meeting at Elvaston recently when a county councillor stated that the car parking charges could rise to £10? And this is for a park to which the county council has promised us access, as at present! Will those of us who are classified as dog-walkers still be able to take our four-legged companions with us when we get the daily exercise that is now recommended at Government level for our health?

This is access at a price. And what are the benefits going to be then? Will we be struck down in awe at a few additional bits of box and yew hedging that are projected as a garden restoration for which lottery funding is required? And how is the cash-deprived county council - which cannot afford even minor repairs, like getting a worker on to the roof to pull up the trees that are already growing there - going to be able to match-fund a bid for £10m?

But let us all sit back and let our county council work for us and with us, even when it proposes cutting down part of a nature reserve with kingfishers, grass snakes and newts, all protected species; and allows us to have a hotel which none of us will visit; and a golf course on which only a wealthy few of us will ever play; a county council which recommends this folly when golf courses locally are just about breaking even and yet another fashionable, well-established, local hotel has just bitten the dust. Sally Shenton