The Braintree and Witham Times (4 March 2014)
has reported a U-turn by Essex County Council on restricted opening times at Cressing
Temple. (See http://www.braintreeandwithamtimes.co.uk/news/braintree_witham_news/11041956.Concerns_remain_over_future_of_Cressing_Temple_despite_U_turn_on_opening_hours_cut/
.) The Essex Society for Archaeology and
History has received the press release and response from Elphin Watkin, a
member of the ESAH Council and President of HEARS.
Two
Views of Cressing Temple:
 |
| Wheat Barn: Cressing Temple |
Great
year ahead for Cressing Temple
Cressing Temple - a medieval moated farmstead
boasting the oldest timber-framed barns in the world - has a busy year ahead
welcoming tourists, hosting school visits, and organising public and private
events, following a recent operational review.
Full details of Cressing Temple’s attractions
and public events, including the Essex County Car and Motorcycle Show (13 July)
and Tudors Live (5-19 August), are available at www.visitparks.co.uk/places/cressing-temple.
During the peak period (1 April to 31
October) the site will continue to open from 10.30am to 4.30pm, and access to
the barns will continue to be available from 10.30 until 4.00pm each day.
The site will continue to close to the public
during periods of exclusive site hire.
During the winter months (1 November to 31
March) there will be access to the grounds. The walled garden will be open for
pre-arranged visits.
Following the operational review, the visitor
centre and tearoom are to open only for site hire events by prior arrangement.
Staff are currently being recruited to new
positions at the site.
County Councillor John Jowers, Cabinet member
for Libraries, Communities and Planning, said: “At Cressing Temple visitors can
discover an interesting range of rural barns, and admire a Tudor herb garden,
all set in glorious countryside between Witham and Braintree - it’s well worth
a visit.”
ENDS
 |
| View No 2: Barley Barn, Cressing Temple |
Comment
on press release by Elphin Watkin:
The busy year is with less staff - all
untrained.
Who will welcome all these tourists as all
the facilities have been withdrawn?
No information, no staff to question, no
“wands” to tell them the story of Cressing. School visits will be no more than at present.
Some public and private events have already been cancelled because of the indifference
of the Council when questioned over the future of Cressing.
Further to that events will now cost
considerably more to organise at Cressing with a new scale of extra charges to
be added to any hiring. The public and private events mentioned are only what
was already organised before County decided to down-rate Cressing last October.
The events are ones organised by others for the benefit of the County. Notice
that the website has only had added the detail that the tea room is only
available for events – no mention of no reception or café for casual visitors.
The opening times were only announced at the
end of last week. Up to then County were adamant that the buildings would only
be open to the public at weekends.
The site has always been closed to general
entry when a privately booked event is present. The release suggests that the Walled Garden is
only open for pre-arranged visits. It is open at all times: the site is open
and volunteers are welcome to help run it.
The new staff will be new to Cressing and not
understand the site and its very special needs as a Scheduled Ancient Monument.
By John Jowers statement you have to wonder
if he has ever been there! “Rural” barns – they are all over the country but
the two barns at Cressing are unique survivals from the thirteenth century. The
garden is more than a herb garden having over 1800 different plants all of
which have a use. The site has other garden areas and good walks around the
moats and trees and it deserves the attention that county promised it when they
took the site on in the first place.
The press release makes no mention of the
state of the site and especially the exhibits in the various buildings around
the site that are badly in need of attention.
From the press release you would think that
County had just invested a lot of money into Cressing not just cut its throat.
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