Charges for Wollaton Hall needed to prevent it ‘falling apart’
Wollaton Hall had been free of charge to enter since 2007 before the changes
By Callum Wright
Charges brought in this week to enter Wollaton Hall are ‘essential’ to generate money for repairs to avoid the landmark ‘falling apart’ over time, one volunteer working at the site says.
Visiting the iconic Nottingham venue had previously been free, but now, from Tuesday April 1, visitors above the age of 15 will have to pay a £15 entry fee in a ‘pay once, visit all year round’ system to step inside, with up to three children going free with a paying adult.
Only the hall and its featured Natural History Museum will be included in the charge. Nottingham City Council, which runs the site, says the surrounding deer park will still be free to enter.
Also included in the new system is a ‘rover ticket’, where if visitors pay £30, they can get all year access to the hall alongside Nottingham Castle and Newstead Abbey.
There have since been mixed reactions from visitors and the public regarding the new system’s implementation.
But Martin Nunn, who has volunteered at the hall for over six years, says that the new prices will help to keep the hall alive.
“It will help offset the costs of keeping the museum up and running, ensuring visitors get a good experience when they come and look around,” he said.
“It’s a very old building, it’s in need of constant repair and the repairs are not cheap, it’s highly specialised work with techniques that many people don’t know how to use nowadays,”
“It’s a very expensive property to maintain so it’s essential that it’s done because it would be a real shame if it gradually decomposed and fell apart.”
The Grade I Elizabethan Mansion, which was built between 1580-1588, has been on Heritage England’s ‘at risk’ register since 2023 due to poor resistance from water and wind damage, with the council receiving almost £500,000 to start the repairs.
Max Draper, who had been visiting the hall’s grounds with his family on Monday, said the fee is worth it for what the area has to offer.
“I’m not against it, we’ve been walking around today and all we’ve paid for is parking, so for a smallish fee to enter the hall and see what they’ve got to offer in there, they’ve got to upkeep it somehow,” he said.
“Any extra money to go to funding something that’s educational and good for the family is important, this is a staple to Nottingham, I’ve been coming here since I can remember.
“Nobody wants to see extra money coming out of their pocket but when you’re a resident of the city and you care about where you live, I think putting the money back into it is a really good cause.”
The new fees mark the first time the public have been charged to enter the hall since 2007.
There have been mixed reactions however, with some saying it’s a shame for Nottinghamshire to lose another previously-free attraction.
Daniel, who works in the tourism industry and has visited the hall many times, said: “There should definitely be free historical places in Nottingham, the hall was a great example of that, I’d always recommend it to people as somewhere not far from the city.
“It’s a shame to lose one of the last free historically interesting things about Nottingham for there to be a charge now.”
Another resident, who said some of his earliest memories are at the hall, said: “This [the entry fee] is going to dissuade people from going, for a family it will add up to quite a considerable cost.
“What about tourists who are just here for the weekend, they’re just not going to do it.
“I always give a donation when I go anyway, we should be contributing but it should be voluntary or at least make it a modest amount.”
Nottingham City Council has been approached for further comment.
Announcing the introduction of fees back in January, Cllr Sam Lux, executive member for carbon reduction, leisure and culture, said: “Fundamentally that charge will allow us to invest properly in the building. We know anecdotally from other authorities that if those kinds of really expensive beautiful buildings don’t get the investment they need they often become dilapidated and are forced to close in the long run.”
Explore more
