PROJECT PROFILE
MARBLE HILL
MARVELS
Marble Hill is being revived and at the heart are a new team of volunteers. Rachel Morrison, Audience Development Manager, looks back at all the volunteer team’s achievements so far.
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n December 2019 work finally commenced on the 66 acres of Marble Hill Park, within which stands one of the greatest examples of a Palladian Georgian villa. Built as the home of Henrietta Howard, Countess of Suffolk and mistress to King George II, Marble Hill House sits on the picturesque Thames riverfront. The site boasts an ice house and a grotto, and has a number of sports facilities, from football pitches to cricket nets. Marble Hill is not only a historic masterpiece but also a place of abundant nature, and is loved by the whole community as if it were their own garden.
The project The £6 million investment will transform the site and safeguard its history by ensuring that the house is restored and open, for free, for five days a week. The project will also revive the landscape and improve the facilities across the park. A new café will help support the running of the house, and the creation of an additional history-inspired children’s play area will be a wonderful new draw for people. It has been a delight to start to welcome more volunteers to the team, and their involvement and commitment has breathed new life into the site. It all started in the kitchen garden Since 2016, Marble Hill has been blessed with a dedicated kitchen garden team who, with the Environment Trust, have created an allotment space. They have nurtured vegetables and inspired children to learn more about sustainability and nature, provided a space for art, and picnics areas for disabled users. During the pandemic our knowledgeable volunteers kept the area watered and it yielded an amazing crop of vegetables for a weekly Marble Hill Veg Shop. This year we hope the produce will provide the best local soup around. ► 18 english-heritage.org.uk
