A major £5.8 million redevelopment project at Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal is set to begin next month, with part of the World Heritage Site closing to visitors for around a year.
The National Trust has announced that the Studley Royal entrance and tea-room will close from Monday 7th September as work gets underway on the Studley Revealed project.
The scheme is one of the biggest investments ever made at the UNESCO World Heritage Site near Ripon and is designed to improve visitor facilities while restoring historic views across the landscape.
The main visitor routes through the estate, including entry via the Visitor Centre and West Gate, will remain open throughout the works. Studley car park will also stay open for visitors accessing the deer park.
The National Trust has also confirmed the appointment of Ripley-based construction firm The HACS Group as principal contractor for the project.
Justin Scully, General Manager of National Trust Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal, said:
“Studley Revealed represents a once-in-a-generation investment in the future of this remarkable World Heritage Site.
"The project will help us better care for the landscape and create visitor facilities that are worthy of a World Heritage Site for the millions of people who will continue to enjoy this special place in years to come.
“As a conservation charity, we're committed to protecting the heritage of Studley Royal while helping visitors understand and enjoy what makes it so special.”
Over the years, the National Trust says the original Georgian garden design has become obscured by later additions, including temporary buildings, fencing and overgrown planting.
The project aims to restore lost views, improve accessibility and create enhanced visitor facilities, including accessible toilets, a larger café and new interpretation spaces explaining the history and global significance of the water garden.
The HACS Group, based just eight miles from the site in Ripley, will lead the construction phase.
Commercial Director Eddie Ashworth said:
“We are delighted to have been awarded this project, particularly as it’s so close to home.
"Supporting our local community is something we’re genuinely passionate about, and while we’ve had the privilege of working on a number of heritage projects, this will be our first World Heritage Site – an exciting opportunity to showcase our team’s expertise while helping to enhance a valued community facility.”
The company has a long history with the estate, having helped dredge and restore Studley Lake in 1984.
More than 40 years later, it is returning to help deliver the latest chapter in the site's conservation.
The wider project team includes heritage architects Feilden Fowles and landscape architects RankinFraser, who have developed plans to improve accessibility while protecting the historic character of the site.
Senior Architect at Feilden Fowles, Maelys Garreau, said:
“Studley Revealed reconnects an 18th-century masterpiece with its original landscape, reuniting the deer park and garden, reinstating the Georgian sequence at its true entrance, while enhancing accessibility and climate resilience across the site.
“At the heart of the scheme is the careful conservation and extension of the Grade II Listed Victorian Lodge that will provide a larger tearoom and interpretation space, framing key views across the breathtaking landscape.
“Together with the National Trust and design team, we have blended architecture into nature to shape a single, considered composition that honours history, restores lost sightlines, and revives the garden’s spatial order, that we hope will continue to delight visitors for generations to come.”
Once complete, the National Trust says the project will create a more welcoming and accessible arrival point at Studley Royal while helping to safeguard the Outstanding Universal Value of the World Heritage Site for future generations.
LISTEN: Your Harrogate's Pete Egerton chats to Justin Scully, General Manager of National Trust Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal:
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