Thursday 27 May 2021
Decline of the National Trust
How did the National Trust end up in this sorry state?
In the heritage world, David has just beaten Goliath. This week, Tim Parker, chairman of the National Trust, resigned after seven years in the role – and just 24 hours after a rebel group of members launched a bid to depose him at the annual general meeting.
We cancelled our membership because in our eyes it isn't worth the money. Expensive mediocrity all over the place.
Restore Trust – of which I am a member – was only founded last month. It already has 10,000 supporters and a fighting fund of £50,000. It was founded to restore the trust to its original aims – to concentrate on conservation, an aesthetic experience, a sense of place, a feeling of welcome and an apolitical ethos. It has claimed a major scalp in the shape of Tim Parker.
I hope Restore Trust succeeds, but we won't be going back. For example the observation below rings a very loud bell with me - in our experience National Trust baby language was everywhere.
It’s not just the lack of attention to detail; baby language was everywhere at trust properties. At Osterley Park, the elegant Adam house on the fringes of west London, the servants’ quarters were decorated with a sign saying: “It was the scullery maid’s job to empty and clean the chamber pots every morning. A very smelly job.” A tree stump at Hughenden had a sign next to it, reading: “Please do not climb on me.”
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National Trust ‘could become more woke’ after chairman’s resignation
Insiders insist Tim Parker acted as a brake on ‘progressive’ wing of the charity and was ‘very firm’ it should remain non-political
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2021/05/26/national-trust-could-become-woke-following-chairmans-resignation/
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Yes, the woke nonsense was irritating, but I doubt if we will be going back either. They have managed to homogenise everything, and this really shows when you visit a privately owned property - they seem quirky and interesting in comparison. The general impression is of dumbing down as well as cranking up the social justice issues. They have obviously had a big campaign to sign up people who normally wouldn't visit their properties. It's the architectural equivalent of Classic FM.
The 'homogenising' has been going on long before the 'woke element' came to the fore.
The gardens which was my area of expertise were all National Trusted as we called it, ie you could tell a NT garden as there was a general theme to them all, irrespective of their original layout when privately owned, they just couldn't leave as was it had to conform.
Regular visitors will remember that I bang on about organisations having a 'natural' lifespan of around 70 years or so. After this time the original aims of the organisation are overtaken by the personal aims of managers and workers. Producer Capture.
So... "The Trust was founded in 1895 by Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Hardwicke Rawnsley to "promote the permanent preservation for the benefit of the Nation of lands and tenements (including buildings) of beauty or historic interest"
Arguably the National Trust is well overdue for a proper reorganisation and commitment to the original values.
I know quite a lot about the National Trust as for fifteen years I was their historic wallpaper consultant, repairing and conserving historic interiors such as Kingston Lacey and Calke Abbey in Derbyshire. Over the years I came to see that most N.T. staff were not enthusiasts for history and heritage, but their primary concern was their own careers and advancement. It used to nettle me that my enthusiasm for all things antique and historic was not shared even by HBRs (the N.T. equivalent of museum curators).
Your objections to the way the N.T. has developed comes as no surprise to me. It's corporate development; emergence as a modern woke organisation was inevitable when careerists take over. This was an organisation which, even in the 1990s constantly begrudged funding me and would not put me on the permanent staff, but had any amount of resources to employ public relations, educational outreachers and merchandisers.
I avoid visiting N.T. properties nowadays for the very reasons Sam and Wiggia have so acutely observed.
microdave - I suspect the NT could indeed become more woke. It may even be more successful by shedding people who know a thing or two in favour of a much larger number who don't.
Sam - I agree, I don't think we'll be going back. An NT visit is becoming a day out for the family rather than anything deeper.
Wiggia - we don't usually tour the gardens, but maybe that is because they have to conform as you say. They certainly don't bring them to life.
DJ - it is overdue for a proper reorganisation, but I'd be surprised if it goes beyond superficial. It isn't easy to see how it could be done, although breaking it up might be a way forward.
Tammly - historic wallpaper consultant sounds interesting. I might just be able to spot eighteenth century Chinese or a William Morris pattern, but that's about it. I'm more into porcelain and pottery although I'm no expert. Maybe furniture too, but again I'm no expert.
Your comment about the lack of enthusiasm among staff is interesting. A few years ago I was chatting to an antique porcelain collector who certainly is an enthusiast, having written a book on it. He told us about helping arrange the Derby china display at Derby museum as he knew more than the museum staff.
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