DEPARTMENT FOR
CULTURE, MEDIA AND SPORT News Release (77/09) issued by COI News
Distribution Service on 13 May 2009
A new visitor
centre to help bring alive the mystery and majesty of Stonehenge,
the UK's internationally renowned World Heritage Site, was
given the go-ahead in principle today by the Government.
The Stonehenge Programme Board, chaired by the Culture Minister,
Barbara Follett, and Transport Minister, Andrew Adonis, has
recommended that the centre, costing up to £25m, should be built
at Airman's Corner. The way is now clear for work to be done
on working up a design, seeking planning permission and raising
funding to deliver the project.
Funding will be provided through a range of private and public
sources, including English Heritage, Heritage Lottery Fund,
Highways Agency, Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the
Department for Transport. The level of public funds committed will
be conditional on meeting the rigorous requirements for approving
major public projects. The Government also announced that the site
will be further enhanced by closing the A344 which at present
takes traffic very close to the stones.
Culture Secretary Andy Burnham said:
"Stonehenge has fascinated and enthralled people for
thousands of years. It is undoubtedly one of the world's key
heritage sites, and a preeminent UK visitor attraction. I am
delighted that we have been able to identify a sustainable and
affordable solution for a visitor centre at one of the
world's key heritage sites, and one of the UK's most
iconic visitor attractions. Today's announcement marks the
first steps towards making long held aspirations for Stonehenge a
reality, and could not have been achieved without the commitment,
determination and passion of our partners. "
Barbara Follett said:
"Stonehenge is our most important and well recognised
prehistoric site and, as such, is absolutely at the heart of our
national history and heritage. Everyone agrees, however, that the
way it is presented to visitors is far short of ideal. Consensus
on how to improve visitor facilities has eluded stakeholders for
far too long, and so I am delighted that we now have plans to move
forward. There is still a long way to go, of course, but we now
have to get on with making it happen"
The chosen site at Airman's Corner is about 1.5 miles west
from the current site, at the edge of the World Heritage Site and
has good access to the stones.
English Heritage Chairman, Professor Sir Barry Cunliffe, said:
"Our vision for Stonehenge has always been a simple one: to
restore a sense of dignity and wonder to its setting, and provide
visitors with a really high quality experience. I believe the
plans announced today will do this, and significantly improve what
we have there at present."
Dame Fiona Reynolds, Director General of the National Trust, added:
"The new facilities will greatly improve the experience for
the many thousands of visitors to Stonehenge, while the other
planned work has the potential to really improve the wider setting
of the monument itself. We look forward to working with English
Heritage and the other partners in this project to help take it forward."
NOTES TO EDITORS
Today's announcement marks approval in principle for the
project and is, of course, still subject to a detailed business
case, planning permission and funding.
The Stonehenge, Avebury and Associated Sites World Heritage Site
(WHS) was inscribed in 1986. The part of the WHS around Stonehenge
itself contains one of the richest concentrations of early
prehistoric monuments in the world. At the time of inscription
the UK provided assurances to UNESCO that the closure of the A344
road which crosses the avenue at Stonehenge was receiving serious
consideration as part of the overall plans for the future
management of the site.
Since 1986, English Heritage and successive government ministers
have pledged commitment to improving the standards of presentation
and facilities at Stonehenge and taking the roads out of the
landscape. Most recently, in line with the vision outlined by the
Stonehenge Management Plan published in 2000, two major projects
were planned: to remove the roads from around Stonehenge by
placing the A303 in a tunnel, and to relocate visitor facilities
to a new centre away from the Stones. Public inquiries were held
into each and the outcomes reviewed at length.
In 2007 the Government announced that it would not continue with
a published scheme of a 2.1km bored tunnel for the A303 in view of
the estimated cost of around £500m. However, the Government made a
commitment to review the Management Plan and to complete
environmental improvements at Stonehenge, including new visitor
facilities. A Project board was re-convened, jointly chaired by
the Ministers for Culture and Transport and a Project
Implementation Group (PIG), reporting to the Board, was charged
with delivery of environmental improvements. English Heritage was
tasked with revising the Management Plan.
In December 2008, following public consultation of the future of
Stonehenge, two options for the location of a new visitor centre
were proposed by the PIG: Fargo Plantation and Airman's
Corner. These options were carefully considered by the Stonehenge
Project Board which subsequently recommended to Ministers the
Airman's Corner option with low impact transit arrangements
to a point near the Stones.
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