B 1 · Visitor numbers
There is no doubt about the high level of public interest in the historic environment. The MORI poll commissioned by English Heritage in 2000 showed that discussions of heritage (defined as the historic environment) met with positive reactions from most people. 51% of the population had visited a historic attraction in the previous year, compared to 17% who had attended a football match. 98% felt that the heritage was important to educate children about the past, and that all schoolchildren should be given the opportunity to find out about England's heritage; 96% believed the same for adults; 88% felt there should be public funding to preserve the heritage; 76% felt that it enriched their lives.
These opinions are supported by visitor figures. Cathedrals and parish churches are the most visited of all old buildings, attracting some 31 million visitors, excluding worshippers, per annum. Both Canterbury Cathedral and Westminster Abbey usually receive over a million visitors, while York Minster has around 1.5 million.
Iconic historic buildings, however much they charge, attract very large numbers, including tourists: the Tower of London averages two million visitors per annum.
The official residences of the Queen saw a rise of 30% in visitors in 2003, with 1.9 million people going to Buckingham Palace, Holyrood House and Windsor Castle, as well as the new Queen's Galleries.
Membership of large organisations is an important factor. The National Trust for England, Wales and Northern Ireland, which has been working on its membership for many years, now has 3.3 million members, while English Heritage has 470,000. There are 260,000 members of the National Trust for Scotland.
A number of organisations arrange special events which attract large numbers. These include Heritage Open Days (see p.72) when huge numbers visit buildings which are often not generally accessible, making them the most popular voluntary cultural event of the year. In 2003 800,000 people attended the two Open Days, with a further 350,000 participating in the London Open House weekend.
National Archaeology Days are run by the Council for British Archaeology. This is an annual event held over a July weekend. The aim is to encourage families to visit museums, sites of archaeological and historical interest and archaeological units to see 'Archaeology in Action' and take part in activities on-site. In 2003, 60,000 people visited 3,600 sites.
In spite of all these initiatives, there is no room for complacency. Visitor figures are dependent on political factors and the economic survival of many sites depends on the continuation of prosperous peace. According to Heritage Counts 2003 and the National Trust's research, visitor figures to many sites fell in the years following 1999 but rose in 2002/03 for the National Trust and the Historic Houses Association. Given a relatively stable international situation, visitor figures seem set to rise - but such a situation does not seem particularly reliable.
Country houses as visitor attractions are faced with the costs of visiting, particularly for a family, by the perception that such houses are 'not for us', and by competition from theme parks and shopping malls. Variations in visitor numbers do not generally apply to properties with interesting gardens, which are constantly changing and which encourage a sense of personal involvement, or to properties which offer a range of activities and attractions.
The situation in the United States offers a dire warning. There the number of visitors to historic sites has dropped dramatically in the past two or three years with such places as Colonial Williamsburg suffering a fall of up to 20%.
While the visitor market cannot be taken for granted, visiting old buildings, ancient sites and gardens is evidently, for United Kingdom residents as well as for tourists, a favourite activity.
Some visitor figures in 2003:
 Historic houses belonging to the Historic Houses Association (several important houses are not members): 15 million
English Heritage sites 2003/4: 4.95 million (including 439,000 school visits) Cadw: 1,184,000
The National Trust for England, Wales and Northern Ireland: 12.5 million visitors (at properties with an admission charge), with 50 million visitors to free access sites
Historic Scotland: 2.7 million
The National Trust for Scotland: 1.8 million
Historic Royal Palaces (which includes the Tower of London, Hampton Court, Kensington Palace and the Banqueting House at Whitehall): over 3 million in 2003
|
section start
On this page
'In the heritage world we spend millions on conserving buildings – and very little on making them live.'
Professor David Austin
|
