Chatsworth Estate publishes first phase of decade-long management plan

Following initial engagement with stakeholders in November, Chatsworth Estate has produced a draft of its Whole Estate Plan (WEP), as part of its "ambitious vision for the next 15 years and beyond".

Concerning the management of both Chatsworth House and its 155-hectare Stand Wood, the final plan for the Peak District estate is due for publication in summer 2023.

READ MORE: Ramorum-infected Chatsworth House woodlands set for major replanting

Lord Burlington, chairman of The Chatsworth Settlement Trust, said: “We take great care to balance the needs of conservation, access, enjoyment, education, community and economy at Chatsworth. 

"Our plan sets out our aims for achieving this balance over the next 15 to 20 years, and our commitment to work in partnership with stakeholders and community members who share our desire to make a lasting, positive contribution on a local, national, and global level.”

Chatsworth’s Whole Estate Plan will run in partnership with, and alongside, the Peak District National Park Authority’s own aims.

The Plan covers the core Chatsworth Estate, including Chatsworth House, Garden, parkland, and Stand Wood – all under the management of the Chatsworth House Trust charity – as well as farms, woods, moorland and other interests between Baslow and Beeley, plus Peak Village in Rowsley.

Phil Mulligan, chief executive of the Peak District National Park Authority, said: “We’re pleased to see the continued progress of this ambitious Whole Estate Plan for Chatsworth and no more so than as we embark upon the next chapter of the wider Peak District’s future with the latest Management Plan for the National Park." 

As previously reported by FJ, forestry officials at Chatsworth are currently planting around 25,000 new trees to create a more diverse Stand Wood, with a much wider variety of species including oak, hornbeam, birch, alder, sycamore and yew trees.