Managing Dogs ...And Their Owners on the Holkham National Nature Reserve First Words
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Holkham Gazette Issue 26 Autumn 2017 Managing dogs ...and their owners on the Holkham National Nature Reserve First words Wells Carnival chair Patrick Weston says thanks for all the help Wells Carnival Committee would like to The problem of unrestrained and thank all the businesses in and around uncontrolled dogs on the Holkham Wells that offered sponsorship and help National Nature Reserve and in organising events, donated raffle prizes beach is of great concern to many and gave up their time to help with the local people. In this issue of the y C Wells Carnival in August. Gazette, reserve manager Sarah © Patrick says, “One of our biggest o Henderson makes a plea for people t sponsors and supporters is the Holkham o h to control their dogs – the P Estate. This year, Pinewoods Holiday Park countryside is not one big doggy has donated £14,130 from the car park revenue to Wells Carnival, for which the carnival playground and wildlife suffers committee says a heartfelt thank you. Holkham’s help with the events has always been hugely from the intrusion. generous. In addition to sponsorship, The Victoria helps with the Carnival Bike Ride, Holkham’s Halloween and feeding and watering the riders, the Beach Café helps with the Carnival Beach Party, Christmas events are laid out, plus Pinewoods Holiday Park assists with laying out the area for the Sandcastle Competition the second part of Lord Leicester’s and the Teddy Bears’ Picnic and Holkham’s Education Department runs the Fantastic discussion about local housing. Beasts and children’s activities in the pine woods. Plenty to read for all. Holkham’s financial and on-the-ground help is greatly appreciated by all the carnival Sara Phillips, Editor committee and it allows us to put on a carnival that we can be very proud of. We look Contents forward to working with Holkham into the future.” First words ........................................ 2 & 3 Housing at Holkham: second part of Halloween at Holkham Lord Leicester’s article ................. 4 & 5 Thursday 26th to Sunday 29th October, 10am-5pm Dogs and wildlife on the Holkham Halloween at Holkham is a ‘spooktacular’ occasion! Join in the National Nature Reserve ............. 6 & 7 fun and get hands-on with the amazing Kiddy Cook team in New Holkham NNR director David Lyles’ the old kitchen and decorate your own terrifyingly tasty vision for the future ......................8 & 9 creation. Follow the fun trail around the hall to discover A History of Holkham in 50 Objects ..... 9 Make Christmas Special .............. 10 & 11 frightening factoids and creative crafts and have a spooky time Feature: Apprenticeships ............. 12 & 13 solving the macabre murder mystery. Find out what lurks in The Managing tree safety ............................. 14 Field to Fork Experience for Halloween adventurers. There’s Marston’s makes it Holkham ................ 15 bewitching poetry, spooky skulls and a creepy quiz to keep you on Last words .............................................. 16 your toes – beware scares galore! Jump on board the Halloween Express over to the wicked walled garden. It will be a hoot with ‘Wild Encounters’ and their real-life owls. A storyteller will be there too, enthralling you with spell-binding www.holkham.co.uk and mystical tales. Come dressed for the occasion and join in the fancy dress parade, © The Holkham Gazette 2017 get gory grazes or weeping wounds with face painting and test your powers of pumpkin Published by Coke Estates Limited carving. Mind-boggling games, trails and Halloween crafts will make your visit truly Holkham Estate Office terrifying! Wells-next-the-Sea Tickets: Hall, Field to Fork and Walled Garden: Adult £15, Child (2-16 yrs incl.) Norfolk NR23 1AB £7.50, Family (2+3) £41. Telephone: 01328 710227 Field to Fork and Walled Garden: Adult £7, Child (2-16 yrs incl.) £3.50, Next issue published Spring 2018 Family (2+3) £19. Save 10% and book online. 2 • Holkham Gazette Holkham to Hatfield Lord Leicester sums up David Horton-Fawkes’ time at Holkham Polish ponies graze David Horton-Fawkes joined Holkham as estates director Castle Acre common on 1st May 2009. Prior to David’s appointment, the By Henry Barringer, Holkham rural surveyor estate had undergone significant growth, expansion Castle Acre common, a large area of unimproved and diversification. They were grazing marsh on the banks of the River Nar, is a exciting times, but in truth, hugely important site for wildlife and biodiversity. It is we had probably taken on classified as a SSSI, Site of Special Scientific Interest, too many projects and due to its exceptionally diverse grassland communities, spread ourselves too thinly. and is thought to be the most important valley One of David’s great skills grassland in Norfolk. It is owned and managed by the has been rationalising the estate. Holkham put the common into Higher Level estate’s activities, deciding Stewardship in 2013, to help promote fen plants and to which to undertake encourage the growth of species rich grassland. ourselves, for instance cafés Any walkers enjoying the Nar Valley Way may have and farming, which to choose excellent partners to team up noticed the introduction of some Konik ponies to the with; Holkham Emerald for the potato joint venture and Norfolk common. The Koniks are vital to the management of etc. for cycle hire and lake-based activities and, of course, which the site; grazing all year, keeping on top of the activities to discontinue. An avid reader of business books, vegetation and ensuring some of the rarer species of David taught me a couple of phrases from them, including that plants can thrive. The ponies are stocky, hardy from time to time I had ‘to kill my favourite children’ – Holkham animals, native to Poland and have been used by Fine Foods and Holkham Linseed Paints (we still use it all over organisations such as the Norfolk Wildlife Trust to the estate, we just don’t retail it) were culled! good effect. Holkham Estate bought the ponies from He helped me formulate the estate strategy and has turned my vision into the reality of what we see around us – a fully- Wicken Fen NNR last year and so far they have done a functioning, wonderful estate where all visitors are welcome and wonderful job of grazing Castle Acre common. all staff valued. David instituted the three ‘Ss’ I gave him when he Having received a few calls from concerned locals started in 2009; ‘Strategy, Structure, Standards’. He is an about the ponies, the estate would like to assure excellent judge of character; look at the calibre of the managers everyone that they have not been abandoned and are he recruited. Incidentally, congratulations to Laurane Herrieven, well looked after. Neil Morrell and Richard Seabrooke, who have outlasted him! David never forgot that Holkham is a family business; he always put the family at the centre. His first priority was to ensure that the family was happy. My father and his wife Sarah, my wife Polly and I have been hugely happy with his management of the estate. Luckily, I didn’t believe a mutual friend who told me after David’s appointment that he was a rabid Communist! The happiness at the centre of the estate filters down through our wonderful staff, enlivens them all and helps them to enjoy their work and, of course, that leads to greater commitment and better performance. David leaves us at the end of the year but in December 2018, I’m delighted to report, he re-joins us as a trustee. We look forward to that moment, but in the meantime our heartfelt thanks to him for overseeing an amazing transformation at Holkham, and the best of luck to him as he takes on the role of chief executive at Hatfield Estate for the Marquess of Salisbury. Autumn 2017 • 3 Holkham’s housing and development Lord Leicester considers the many houses Holkham has built over the course of the last 23 years Above and below: Manor In the last Holkham Gazette I promised I like to think living in north Norfolk Farm Barns in Wells that in this issue I would “discuss some of most of my life has shaped my interest Right: Almshouses in our plans for the future and look back in, and understanding of, materials and Burnham Market with a degree of pride on the houses we architectural form and the context in have built.” Well, plans for the future which buildings sit in our beautiful will now have to wait until next spring’s landscape. When I walk the streets of publication, but a round-up of all we towns and cities, my eyes rarely take in have achieved in terms of house building the shops and neon signs, but gaze seemed appropriate for this issue. upwards at the elevations, roofs, So what has been built and where did materials and styles of the buildings. it all start? I suppose the start was being So I’m not an architect, but I am an brought up in Burnham Thorpe, amateur enthusiast and a builder; the Burnham Norton and then Holkham first three months of 1994 were spent on Hall from the age of 16, followed by a the cement mixer whilst undertaking my History of Art degree at Manchester first project, Temple’s Barn in Wighton, University with an Architecture in which I ended up living. They say you subsidiary. I think we can forget the only learn from your mistakes and on Officers’ Mess I lived in in Germany; a this project there were plenty! Amongst WWII Luftwaffe barracks – somewhat many other failings the barn was the brutalist! Then back to Norfolk at coldest place I have ever lived and, with Wighton, then Waterden and ten years neighbouring Chalk Farm Barn, we ago back to Holkham Hall.