Vandalised Clumber Park bridge will not be reopened to vehicles

In early March 2018, Ornamental Bridge at Clumber Park was subject to an act of extreme intentional vandalism.

Since the incident occurred, Clumber Park has been overwhelmed by the support and response from the public coming from far and wide.

The bridge was reopened to pedestrians and cyclists soon after the incident but has remained closed to cars ever since.

And after carefully considering the benefits for conservation of the iconic Grade 1 listed Bridge, the wider parkland, wildlife and the experience of visitors, the National Trust has come to the decision not to reopen the Bridge or Drayton Gate entrance, off the A614, to cars and other vehicles.

Beth Dawson, General Manager at Clumber Park said, “The Bridge is such an iconic and much-loved part of Clumber Park’s history, and we’ve been reviewing how we can best care for it going forward.

“We have to minimise the possibility for this sort of incident ever happening again, taking into consideration the conservation benefits for wildlife and people’s enjoyment of this traffic-free area, we have taken the decision that the Bridge should not reopen to vehicles in the future.

“We recognise that some visitors have previously enjoyed accessing the south side of Clumber Lake with their cars. Moving forward as part of our £9 million investment programme ‘Clumber Park Revitalised’, we will be working with visitors and various groups to develop alternative and improved access to the south side of the Park.”

Nottinghamshire Police Dive Team have helped to recover stone from the Bridge from Clumber Lake. Stonemasons at Clumber Park are currently exploring ways in which this stone can be reused.

Restoration of the bridge itself is due to start in May this year and will last for approximately six months.